Crazy Beautiful
by I.Dream.Of.Hardyz
Summary: She's a model who can't keep a boyfriend, he's a bartender who doesn't have much. They're different people with different backgrounds, but one night, they meet at a club in NYC & sparks arise. But happiness isn't always promised, is it? AU. MATT/EVE
1. Done with the old

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note:** I need to stop thinking of new story ideas for a while. I'm so bad, haha. Well, this is actually based a bit off of another story I used to have up here but I discontinued because it wasn't getting the response I wanted from it as well as I wasn't interested in the characters anymore at all. So I re-worked parts of it and took two new characters up, two I assure you I love. Not much else to say, really. This is my first real Matt/Eve story though, and I hope you enjoy!

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**Prologue:**

She was a city girl living in the world's greatest city by day, lost within it by night. He was a small town boy who'd broken the expectations of those around him and then lost it all anyway just by one simple mistake. Life is screwed up at times, they both know that. So on one late summer night, two personalities will clash and blend. It started out in innocence, just a friendly conversation, but when it's all over, what will be left and who will be standing?

**Chapter One:**

"So Eve, here's what I'm thinking," a loudmouthed girl spoke from beside a brunette woman. "We forget that Todd and Sean ever existed and we dance the night away at the new club down the street from Jack's place. He'll let us stay there tonight. You know how he is."

The brunette—Eve—wasn't listening though. She had her head in the clouds while she walked down a crowded New York City street with her best friend of almost ten years. It had been a long day. First, she had a photo shoot with a department store (not up to what she usually modeled for, but taken in desperation to pay the bills) and then, she'd gone out for an early lunch with her now ex-boyfriend Sean only to be dumped. Sean had claimed they were too different and that his schedule just "didn't mesh well with her". Truthfully, she believed he had another woman on the side and was eager to finally cut her loose.

It brought her to the crowded street with Heather (the best friend), talking about how pathetic their lives were and how every guy on Earth was usually only three things: and none of them were pleasant.

"Eve!"

Eve's head shot up at the sound of her name. She had to stop zoning out. Heather hated feeling like no one was listening to her and if her friend grew to rant mode, the night would never end. "Sorry," she muttered. "What did you say?"

"Girl," Heather sighed, "Forget about that loser. He was too uptight for you anyway. Tonight we're going to the new club down on Apple Street. Okay? Go home and get ready. I'll pick you up at seven."

They had somehow gotten to her apartment without Eve even noticing. She watched as gorgeous Heather bobbed away, already planning to have a man by the end of the night. Her boyfriend hadn't broken up with her. Actually, it was just the opposite. Whenever Heather got bored with the man she was with, she dumped him and found some poor other soul. It was the one thing that Eve hated about Heather. These were nice guys – not a bad guy in the mix and she knew they all walked away broken-hearted.

Todd had been a prime example of that. She'd met him several times. He was a decent guy who worked at a record company and went to college at night. There wasn't anything wrong with him. Maybe he was a bit touchy-feely like Heather had said, but it didn't mean he was a complete piece of crap. Poor Todd had only lasted a month. This was normal though. Heather's relationships never lasted too long. Her longest relationship had been nine months and that was only because the man had been in a coma and she didn't have the heart to just leave him there.

Eve wasn't like that though. She didn't find herself bored with the guys she dated. In fact, they usually dumped her. She wasn't a bad looking girl and she wasn't personality less but guys just didn't stay with her for whatever reason. If Eve had found a guy like the ones Heather dumped, she'd be good.

With a sigh, she pulled her tote bag closer and marched up the steps of her apartment building, waving to her neighbor, Mrs. Calvern who was leaving with her twins, four-year-old Marie and Michael. From there, she took the elevator and got to her apartment, dropping her bag at the door while she greeted her cat, Snuggle and flopped down on the couch.

Eve needed to learn to say no to her best friend. She wasn't in any mood to go to a club that night. Her feet hurt from wearing terrible high heels that morning and her mood was like a popped balloon: deflated.

But she'd never get away with not going. As much as she wanted to sleep or curl up with a movie, the young woman was bright enough to know that if she didn't go with Heather, she wouldn't stop hearing about it for weeks on end. "What do you think, Snuggle?" she asked the gray cat. "Should I go?"

Snuggle meowed in response and took off toward the kitchen, only stopping to look back hopefully.

Eve rolled her eyes. "Stupid cat," she muttered. "I swear I'm training you to feed and clean yourself."

An hour later, it was about six and after feeding Snuggle, cleaning the cat's dirty litter box, and doing several bills, Eve took off toward her room, preparing to hate the entire night. She pulled out a pair of dark wash jeans and a red halter top, with matching red one-inch heels. Then, she took a quick shower and slipped her clothes on, deeming herself presentable while little Snuggle watched on, eyes curious.

"She's paying for my drinks tonight," she informed Snuggle, ruffling the cat's hair and sitting down next to her. "Next time, we're going to a movie."

The cat blinked and meowed at her. Shaking her head, she searched for her make-up. Obviously if she was talking to her cat, she needed more friends.

"You look absolutely fabulous!" Heather cried. The blonde woman looked pretty good herself. She was dressed in a cocktail dress that barely covered what her mother gave her and flaunted every curve she owned. It was snug and made her look amazing while the peach color somehow highlighted her light green eyes. "Let's go!"

"You know, you owe me."

"Oh please! When you have a gorgeous guy hanging off your arm at the end of the night, you'll be thanking me over and over again. Live a little, Eve. The only way you're going to find Prince Charming is by getting out there and flirting a little. You're a model. You look confident on the screen yet when you're out and about lately you are worse than the worst hermit crab."

Eve rolled her eyes. "Thanks for the confidence boost."

"That's not what I meant, Eve and you know it." Heather stopped her and stared into her eyes. "What's the matter with you lately? You're fiery and lately all I see is some little sparks that are left over by a soaked fire."

She shrugged as they walked. "I don't know. I'm just tired."

"Of what?"

"I don't know. Tired of guys walking over me and treating me like crap. And then leaving me because we just don't fit or whatever. It kind of puts a damper on your love life, you know." She began to fix her shirt although there was nothing wrong with it as her friend stared at her.

"This is exactly why you need to get to that club tonight! There will be plenty of guys to hang out with and meet up with. How will you ever find the one good guy out of a thousand duds if you have that kind of attitude? Think about it. Now come on!"

Heather dragged her forward. Maybe she was right after all. Sulking and feeling sorry for herself wasn't going to get her in the position she wanted. In fact, Heather was right. She needed to get out there and meet some new people. It wouldn't hurt. It wasn't like she was bound to whoever she met that night. She'd get a few beers and dance with a few good looking guys and when the night was over, whatever happened would be whatever happened. For once, she was sick of feeling sorry for herself.

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**Yay for my first chapter! :D I'm so excited. I will be putting up pictures of Heather and some other OCs which will be showing up in future chapters soon on my profile, so be sure to check that out. Other than that, please just read and review and I'll get a new chapter up soon!**


	2. Nightlife

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note:** Yay, thank you for the reviews! For some reason, the page splits I had put in the chapter didn't go through. There should have been little gray lines (like the one below this) in part of that, but oh well. Glad people are enjoying. Just gotta ramble a bit, and some of it's important per se. First off, I got the title idea for this story from a Hanson song, called "Crazy Beautiful". Search it on youtube. Actually search this exactly: Crazy Beautiful (Live) - Hanson and you'll find my favorite version. :) Uhm... the lyrics to have some idea to where it will go, but I'm not exactly sure of everything to come. I want this story perfect. I'm excited for it. That being said, there will be parts of this story that are VERY dark in my eyes and deals with some heavy stuff. You won't see it for a while, but I figured I'd warn everyone now. Hmm, what else? Oh, I put character pictures up of some of the OCs, including Snuggle :D, Heather, and Jack, who you meet in this chapter... yep, I think that is about it? God, I talk waaaay too much! Enjoy!

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The duo arrived at NYC's newest club about twenty minutes later, Heather still chatting Eve's ear off. She was barely listening, instead she was thinking about how she was going to make the night memorable. Heather was talking about some co-worker of hers (she designed for a small store in downtown Manhattan) and how they had no fashion sense. Eve smirked.

Sweet and Sour although named like a Chinese food dish was the newest gossip for everyone in the area. It had opened about a month previous and since doing so, had got rave reviews from everyone who went. The people were nice, the music was great, and it was always clean – something that was surprisingly important to her friends, she found.

"I hope there is a cute guy who can dance here tonight," Heather murmured as they came up to the entrance. "I hate having to take the lead while dancing. It puts me in a bad mood."

"I just want to have fun. I'm not looking for anything other than a good time."

"That's a good place to start. By the way, if you meet your soul mate tonight, I'm taking full credit." Heather grinned at Eve and looped her hand around the other girl's and strode their way toward the Bouncer, a hefty looking guy who was obviously trying to picture what the girls looked like without clothes on. After checking their IDs, they nearly ran inside, exchanging looks of disgust.

"If that's the only guy who takes interest in me tonight," Eve said with a laugh, "I'm screwed."

"Please," Heather crowed. "Have you seen yourself? You look amazing. Don't worry your pretty little head, Eve."

Eve rolled her eyes as her best friend skipped off, leaving her alone. She at least figured they'd go man-hunting together.

Sometimes, she wondered how the two were even friends. Heather was confident in a different way than most, almost cocky even. She didn't care what people thought of her and if her outbursts were rude. She took self-esteem to a whole new level.

The model took off toward the middle of the dance floor where several people already were dancing, paired off. Some girls were already smashed, their drinks sloshing around them, spilling onto guys who didn't seem to mind. The room reeked of alcohol and the floors were sticky – so much for it being clean.

"If this is what I have to chose from, I am so going home." She shook her head and made her way toward the bar, without much on her mind. So far, all the guys she had passed either were too far drunk to even get a name from them, or they were with other girls. She caught a brief look of Heather across the room; she was flirting with a dirty blonde guy who had an infectious smile.

"What can I get ya, sugar?" The southern accented voice broke her thoughts.

Eve peered up to see a dark-haired guy with a nice smile; the bartender. "Um… whatever is cheapest," she answered with a slightly embarrassed smile. Heather was her way home and she knew she'd be there for a while. If she spent all her money before it was time to leave, she didn't want to be stuck without anything to at least distract her.

The guy raised his eyebrows but went to get her order. Minutes later, he came back with what looked to be some kind of beer, something very dark. And when she went to give her money over to him, he put his hand up. "No, it's on the house. Enjoy."

She smiled. "Thanks."

"No problem. Are you here alone?"

"No," she laughed. "My best friend is flaunting her way around the place trying to find herself some kind of toy you can say."

"And you're not?"

She made a face. "Heather dates someone for a month and then throws them out like old leftovers. I prefer real relationships."

The bartender raised his eyebrows. "What, you don't think you can find a guy in a club?"

"Not when every man is piss-drunk and can't put a sentence together, no." She found herself sitting down at the bar and looking at him. "I came here tonight looking for a good time and so far, I really haven't found that. My best friend ditched me as soon as we got here and I'm stuck wondering what the hell I'm doing wrong."

The guy smiled and extended his hand from behind the counter. "I'm Matt."

"Eve," she greeted back. "Sorry, I didn't mean to extend my life story."

Matt chuckled, shaking his head. She watched as he took a dirty rag and swiped it over the wet spots on the counter. "Not a problem. At least you're vocal. It's better than getting words slapped at you and shitty people in general."

Eve didn't know what to say to this, so she changed the topic. "So… does this place live up to the reviews it gets?"

"It's a hell hole, truthfully," Matt told her honestly. "It looks nice and all, but so far, I hate it."

"A bit biased, aren't we?" She slicked a smile on her lips and laughed softly. "It looks nice, after all."

He leaned forward and she caught sight of his eyes, which were a beautiful milky brown. She loved that kind of eyes. Not too dark, not too light. Although blue and green eyes were nice too, she had always loved brown. Her breath caught and she found herself smiling again unwillingly. "Not everything that looks nice is nice," he told her in a dark voice. "Trust me."

There seemed to be more than what he was saying and something told her he wasn't talking about the bar anymore. She went to reply, but she was cut off by a familiar voice. "Eve!"

Heather came up to her, a wide smile on her face, behind her a good-looking guy who seemed a bit tipsy. "This is Colin! I'm going to go out with him to a restaurant down the street. Can you get home okay?"

She took a look at her best friend's new date. He seemed nice enough. He offered her a genuine smile and she couldn't see any reason to object to her best friend's wishes. After all, Heather always did pick the nice, decent-looking guys to play her games with.

"Sure," Eve said over the music. "Have a great time."

Heather squealed and hugged her close. "Thanks," she whispered in her ear. "And hey… looks like you got your fun, huh? I'll see you tomorrow. Tell Jack I'm sorry, okay?"

As Heather ran off with Mr. Nameless she wondered what her friend had meant. What 'fun' was she talking about? She was sitting a bar exclaiming her entire embarrassment of a life to a stranger. Not exactly fun.

"Well, she sure does move fast, doesn't she?" The voice of Matt's brought her back to the present. She smiled at him and nodded.

"I guess I'll be leaving then. There really isn't a reason for me to stay now. I was waiting for Heather anyway, you know? Thanks for the beer, Matt. Nice meeting you."

"Hey, wait!" Matt called out.

Eve turned around with a patient smile. "Yeah?"

"Do you need someone to walk you home? It's awfully late." He had a look of honest concern on his face, like he was worried she couldn't handle walking two blocks. Eve sighed; she had lived in the city all her life. She could take care of herself.

"Thanks, but I got it. I'm going to Heather's twin's place, it's only a few blocks away. I'll be fine."

Matt nodded and wished her well, leaving her to go back to her thoughts, which were slightly down from where she had been before she came into the club. She hadn't found Prince Charming. But her friend had found a new boy toy. At least she'd meet someone new… right? She shook her head. "What was I thinking?" she muttered. "I'm always the one wishing for love."

"I could give you love, baby," a voice said. Eve stopped, not recognizing the voice. A man she couldn't exactly see came from the shadows of an alley. He looked drunk beyond belief and it didn't help that he reeked of something she didn't even want to give a name to; it was that bad.

Quickly, she took a step forward, knowing not to look a drunk in the eye, but he latched his filthy hand around her wrist tightly, making her cry out in pain. "Let go of me!" she snapped.

"Oh, come on baby, I know how to love someone right…"

_Ew_. She took a deep breath and tugged. Images were flying through her mind of rape and that was not something she wanted to add to her life at the moment, or ever. "LET GO OF ME!" She kicked at him and anger flew into his eyes. His other grimy hand pulled her closer and she was met with an awful smell. "LET GO OF ME! HELP!"

"Mm, baby, you smell _good_," he whispered, "but you've made me angry…"

Eve cried out again as he tugged her closer, wrapping his fingers even tighter around her wrist. "Please," she whimpered. "Let me go."

Before he could reply, a swift force knocked him off balance and he stumbled onto her, making Eve crash into the brick wall from behind. "GET THE FUCK OFF OF HER!" another voice said. She felt herself fall to the floor as the drunk man got up and there were punches exchanged. Finally, she saw the drunk man scurry off, leaving the sight of a newly familiar face in front of her: Matt. He kneeled down and smiled softly, worry in his eyes though. "Are you alright?"

She nodded, swallowing the ball in her throat. "I'm fine."

He helped her up, noticing how unsteady she was. "Are you sure?"

She suppressed a smile. "I'm sure. Just a bit shaken."

"Where is this place you're going? I'll walk you."

"You don't have to," Eve began to say, but he shook his head and she really didn't want to walk alone anymore. Slowly, he placed one arm around her and gently guided her in the direction she managed to spit out. Truthfully, she was also a little bruised and battered from the man and couldn't walk all that well.

When they got to Jack's house (Heather's twin), she stopped. "Thanks," she said in a small voice. "A lot."

"Anytime."

"How'd you know I was in trouble?"

He smiled sheepishly. "I didn't, actually. I had gotten off right after you left and when I was walking toward my house, I noticed your shirt and that asshole trying to take you."

"Lucky chance, huh?" He nodded at her. "Well, I can go from here. Jack's only on the fourth floor. Thanks again."

He repeated, "Anytime, Eve."

Then, he kissed her hand and walked away, leaving her to stare into the night until she remembered she was standing on the sidewalk. With a shake of her head, she walked toward the elevator, smiling a little. Thank God for Matt. If he hadn't showed up, she wasn't sure what could have happened.

Only minutes later, she knocked on a familiar door. "Hey," Jack said when he entered. Immediately, alarm filled his eyes. "What happened to you?"

"Do I look that bad?" she joked quietly as he ushered her in. Then, he stood with his hands on his hips until she told him the story.

Jack shook his head. "Are you alright? Do you want anything? Shit, Eve! You shouldn't have gone alone. You could have been killed if it wasn't for that bartender! Leave it to my birdbrain sister to do something like that and leave you alone!"

"She was happy," Eve defended. "I didn't mind."

Jack shook his head, coming back into the living room with a Sprite, one of Eve's favorite sodas. "Here, drink this."

She took the cool soda thankfully as Jack grabbed a blanket and offered it to her. She had known Jack just as long as she had known Heather and considered him a good friend. He was always happy to offer his apartment up when they went out in the town and were too far away to get home in walking distance safely. "Are you sure you're okay?"

She smiled. "I'm fine, honestly."

Jack also smiled. "Good." For a moment, she studied him. Heather and Jack weren't identical twins, but fraternal twins. But Jack was also a good-looking guy, just as Heather was a beautiful girl. He had blue-green eyes and a stunning smile, something that often got him out of trouble. His dirty blonde hair often grew too long and fell into his face, which was why he got it cut often.

"I think I'm going to head to bed actually," she finally spoke. "It's been a long night."

Jack stood and helped her up. She hadn't noticed how weak the entire ordeal had made her. She thanked him as she stepped into the guestroom. "Goodnight, Eve."

"Goodnight, Jack."

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**Wow, that was really long. I usually don't write that long of chapters, haha. But I couldn't find a good place to cut off. What do you think? :) Eve seems a bit OC to me right now, but I'm trying to work in her personality more so... yeah. I need to write the next chapter still, but the ideas are coming. Oh, and why, WHY can't I ever find a good picture of Matt out of ring gear to use for a banner? *sigh* Please read and review! :D:D**


	3. Realizations

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Hello again! :D Thank you so much to Expect-the-Unexpected75, xAttitudex, RandomlyAwsomer, and . Hopeless. Rockstar . for the reviews to the last chapter. They put a big dorky smile on my face. This chapter begins to show more about how both Eve and Matt live, a bit more so to Matt. Jack will be a frequent character in the story, I'm thinking as well. He is like a brother to Eve, since he has been around her as much as Heather. Hmm... what else? I do believe that is it, actually. So please do enjoy!

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The next morning Eve awoke with a feeling of dread in her stomach. Had last night really happened? It felt horrible to her, waking up feeling just as single and lonely as the night before. Part of her was hoping she'd wake up and it'd be yesterday still, giving her some kind of chance to stop Sean from breaking up with her. At least if he hadn't, she wouldn't have had such a crappy night. But it was the next day and she was single… _again_.

Eve took a moment to wipe the sleep from her eyes and then pulled the guest sheets off, staring out the window at the city. The sun was out and people bustled around down below on the streets. Life went on.

Her muscles ached as she stretched, reminding her of another crappy memory from the night before. She had to be a damsel in distress for a poor guy she bared my soul to for no apparent reason. Cringing, Eve looked at the time. Only nine-thirty.

Jack was sitting in the kitchen when Eve entered, dragging herself toward the coffee machine with a sigh. "Didn't sleep well?" Jack mused as he peered up from the paper, amusement in his eyes. She had an idea of pouring his coffee down his shirt but decided to be mature instead and snapped the paper down. "Jeez."

The young woman growled, pouring a cup of coffee into a mug and found her way to the table. "Please tell me last night was a dream."

"I'd love to, Eve but I'd be lying."

"And since when don't you lie?" she grumbled, sipping the warm liquid and arching her brow.

"I never lie."

"And Todd had a chance of marrying Heather."

Jack snorted, shaking his head. "You're cruel."

"No, Heather is." She looked around and listened for a moment. "I take it she didn't come here last night."

"Nope." Jack took another sip of his coffee. "I guess whoever she met last night had a better place than I do."

"He was cute," she murmured. "Seemed decent."

"Always are," Jack agreed with a laugh. He stood up and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Well, I got to get to work anyway. I have a few articles due for the paper this week and I need all the time I can get."

Everyone else had a life and a place to be. All Eve thought had waiting for her was her cat and a big bowl of pity. "Okay. I guess I'll head home then."

He smiled down at her and kissed her cheek, finally disappearing down the hallway. She sat for a moment, staring at her coffee and seeing her tired expression. Eve lived in the greatest city in the world. At least, that's what the tourist books say. So why the hell couldn't she find something great of her very own?

**!**

Back at her apartment, Eve found herself curling up with a bowl of ice cream and watching trashy MTV shows until she became a hermit. What was she doing? It was hard enough for her to get a job as a model already… eating ten pounds in ice cream wasn't going to help that process. But she couldn't stop throwing herself a pity party. Heather had it so easy. All she had to do was bat her eyelashes and she'd have ten, good, hardworking guys all over her. Eve batted hers and got some drunk claiming he'd love her "good".

She didn't envy Heather, she really didn't. And she didn't find herself unattractive. Actually, she believed she had quite the exotic look going for her. Yet all she ever attracted were duds and assholes who only wanted her for one thing and it wasn't a talk.

Her phone ringing brought her back to the present. It was Heather. "Open your door! I'm almost at your floor." Apparently, Heather decided to show up uninvited. But she was used to that as well.

Eve laughed and shut her phone, moving slowly toward her apartment door. Seconds later, someone knocked and a blonde with serious sex hair came tumbling in; Heather. She grinned at her best friend and flopped down on the couch. "I had the _best_ night," she exclaimed. "Colin is _amazing_!"

"I can see that," Eve said with a laugh. "Have you looked in the mirror?"

Heather ran her hand through her hair. "What's wrong with me?"

"You look like you just rolled out of bed."

"That's because I did," Heather informed her with a sly smile. So obviously, Heather and Colin had done more than go to dinner.

"I so do not want to hear about your sex life," she muttered. "He seems cute, though."

"Oh, he is!" the blonde cried back. "He's funny and charming and totally adorable. He's studying for a degree in Journalism like Jack did. He wants to work for the New York Post when he graduates!"

Eve smiled. She loved seeing her friend happy. "I'm glad you met someone."

"Yeah," Heather sighed. "He's such an improvement to Todd, I swear. Todd was so boring but Colin? He's had adventure! He's done things Todd would be too afraid to do." The other girl pulled her legs up on the couch and stared dreamily at the brunette for a moment. Then, she seemed to snap out of it. "So, how did your night go? What did you and your guy do after?"

"What guy?" She hoped that Heather hadn't gotten too drunk the night before. If she was imagining men around Eve, they needed to find her a less pungent drink. "I didn't leave with anyone."

"Then who was that brunette who was practically undressing you with his eyes? You sure were talking to him for a while. Every time I looked over there, you were at the bar."

Eve nearly choked on her laughter as she realized who Heather was talking about. "Matt? The bartender. Oh please! I totally just scared the shit out of him. He wasn't interested."

"Then why did he save you after?" Heather smirked.

"You spoke to Jack?"

"You bet. He said that the bartender beat the shit out of some guy who tried to grab you. Unless you're talking about two different people, I say sparks were flying, dear."

"Please," Eve laughed nervously, "he was just being nice."

"Mhm!"

"Heather!"

The blonde laughed excitedly. "Just give in already. You like him."

"I do not!" But the more Eve thought about it, the more she remembered how handsome his features were and how nice he had been. Such an improvement to the likes of Sean! He didn't seem bothered by her tale, nor freaked out. Why hadn't she noticed this before? "Okay… maybe he's cute."

"Cute? Honey, did you see those eyes?"

Eve nearly squealed at that. She was a sucker for brown eyes after all. "I know! God, it was like ripping open a Twix bar or something." As she said this, she knew her friend would get a double meaning to the words. 'Ripping' and 'chocolate' seemed to catch something dirty in Heather's eyes.

"Ooh, kinky, I like!" Right on par.

"Please," Eve rebutted. "I wasn't thinking like that. I didn't even notice he could have been interested until now."

The two friends sat quiet for a moment until Heather nearly shouted, "_Are you an idiot_? Even Colin could see it! He looked like he wanted to take you into a dark room and kiss your face off!" She paused. "Okay, lame example but you know what I mean, Eve! He was cute. You need to go for it!"

"I don't have his address or phone number."

Heather stared at her for a moment, looking at her friend with a dumbfounded expression on her face. Her best friend wasn't a dumb girl, but sometimes she wondered if she was a natural blonde of her very own. "You know the club he works at! Just go there for God's sake!"

A blush passed by on the brunette's face. "Oh… right."

"Sometimes I wonder," Heather chuckled. "Well, I'd better go. I'm in desperate need of a shower and shit. I'll call you later though. Go find the guy!"

As her friend exited her apartment, Eve couldn't help but feel her heart bounce around in her chest. Maybe there was hope for her after all.

**!**

A few blocks over, Matt Hardy was rolling out of his bed. It creaked under his weight and then bounced around once he was off it. Staring down at his sheets, he shook his head. "I need a new bed," he mumbled.

What time was it? How late had he slept? The answer was it was nearly one thirty in the afternoon. Not abnormal for Matt. He didn't have much to do with his time. He worked the bar down the street at night and slept most of his day away the rest of the time. There he was in New York City and he had barely seen any of it since moving up here.

He was a small town boy, honestly. Lived in Cameron, North Carolina all his life until he was given the chance of a lifetime with a full scholarship to NYU (New York University) in a business major. But that hadn't worked out and he found himself a little, cheap apartment just down the block from where a friend had mentioned a club was opening.

And the rest was history.

He worked and slept. It was a nice routine, sometimes mixed in with late night TV and Chinese food. Whatever was cheap. He didn't make much at the club and had to make sure he still had a place to sleep at the end of the month. His landlord was a greedy old man, charging nearly $2000 dollars for a one-roomed apartment per month. It did include utilities but it was still a lot for someone with little income. Especially considering the place was a hell hole. The walls were paper thin and the place desperately needed a new paint job, as well as new sheetrock up. And he was almost sure he'd seen a roach once. But it was as cheap as he could afford in walking distance to his house.

Until last night, he was sure his life was going nowhere. Matt hadn't graduated from college, he had no degree in anything and to be honest, he wasn't sure if he was even _good_ at anything anymore. It was true: his boss only kept him because no one else wanted the job. He worked and came home… what a life. Again, that was until last night.

Until last night when a woman he met by the name of Eve came into view. She was stunning in very sense of the word and seemed to have a lovely, nice personality. Not only that, the girl also seemed to be in the same situation as him: stuck. He'd taken an instant liking to her. Not only was she beautiful, but she wasn't a stick and didn't seem to have a permanent hand on a bottle of beer like the majority of girls who came into the place.

But he stupidly didn't make a move. It had been a long time since he'd flirted with a girl or got a girl's number. To say Matt was rusty would be an understatement. He hoped he at least made an impression in the girl's mind after saving her from that dirt bag of a drunk. Maybe she's show up at the club again, even if she hated it from the night before. Somehow, he knew he'd see this girl again. And when he did this time, he'd make sure to make the move that should have happened the first time around.

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**Another decent sized chapter. :) I'm proud of myself. So, do you think Eve will go find Matt? And I've made up the club and some NYC stuff for this. I don't know the inside of the city that well... but I do know NYU is a good school... so yeah. Please read and review! :D**


	4. Taking chances

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Hiiiii everyone. :) Glad everyone enjoyed the last chapter, thank you for the reviews. Not too much to say here other than for the sake of the story, both Matt and Eve are around 25, okay? Good. Now, other than that, I just got to say: ENJOY! :D

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"What do you think, Snuggle?" Eve asked her cat as she sat in her room, staring at the clock. She'd been contemplating her actions for a while now, still unsure if she was going to Sweet and Sour or not. She'd weighed the pros and cons in her head several times and found more pros (many actually) then cons but something was still holding her back. Possibly it was the fear of being rejected or maybe she was just an indecisive person in general.

Snuggle meowed, brushing his body against the brunette woman. Then, he flopped down.

"You're not helping," she chuckled. "I guess I'll go. What have I got to lose, after all?"

She strode toward her closet, looking for another outfit that would voice the best parts of her. Fear crippled her again though and she found herself stopping, looking at her cat. "Maybe I'll call Jack first. I'll get him to go with me. If anything goes wrong, at least I don't look stupid when leaving this time."

Snuggle blinked. "Meow."

Eve smiled at the cat and pulled out a pink cocktail dress and studied it. "This'll work."

Minutes later, she dialed Jack's cell phone, biting on her pinky nail as she did so. Truthfully, she wasn't sure what she was going to say to him. There was a good chance that Jack would either complain about going out, or he'd be busy on an article (he had the bad habit of bringing his work home with him).

"Hello?"

"Hi, Jack. It's Eve."

"Eve," Jack greeted back, smiling on the other line. "What's going on?"

"Not too much." She looked absently at the pink dress that was hung over her chair and smiled. "What are you doing tonight?"

"Nothing much." She could hear the suspicion coming into his voice. In the background, a microwave beeped. "Why?"

"How would you like to come check out Sweet and Sour with me?"

Jack raised his eyebrow, pulling a Bagel-ful out of the microwave and taking a bite. "Why? You know, my sister would be a much better match. I don't exactly look all that great in a skirt, you know."

"That's the point," Eve laughed. "I need male backup tonight and you're the only guy I really know all that well."

"Is this about that bartender?"

"Yes," she admitted. He was still being friendly with her, which made Eve happy. Hopefully, he wouldn't put up too much of a fight with her. She needed a comfort when she went, someone she could count on to fall back upon. Jack had been her friend for a long time. He'd be the perfect person. "I don't want to go alone. Heather convinced me to go talk to him again. She's convinced that he's in love with me."

"If I say no, will you harass me until I cave?"

She was smiling now. He already caved. Jack just liked to joke around. "Yes."

"Fine," Jack laughed. "I'll be ready in an hour. I'll pick you up, okay? But you're buying me a drink, got it?"

"Sure, whatever," Eve said. "See you then, Jack."

"Bye, Eve."

**!**

"You look great tonight. I'll be shocked if I don't hear tomorrow you're getting hitched in Vegas." Jack's humor was calming her nerves. She'd only been with him for five minutes but already she felt better. They were walking down another crowded New York street, talking about anything and everything.

Eve smiled at Jack. "I don't imagine myself getting hitched in Vegas to _anyone_, thank you very much. Besides, I don't even know if he was interested. He told me how he was glad someone was friendly to him for once. I was probably just a talking buddy for the night."

"Then why are you even bothering to go back up there?" Jack's question nearly threw her off guard. He was exactly right. She was trying to brush it off as nothing, but the more she thought about it and the more she allowed herself to loosen up, the more she realized that she had found Matt attractive and hopefully, he probably found her attractive too.

"Guilty."

Jack smiled, patting her back. "Don't worry about it. This timid Eve is scaring me. What did Sean do to you?"

"He brought me into a world of boring schedules and meetings." It was true; Sean was a very uptight person who lived by the books. His entire life was scheduled into perfection. Surprises weren't his forte and God forbid you _ever_ threw him a surprise party; the guy probably would have threw a hissy fit.

"He was such a bore. Don't take offense, but I'm glad he dumped you."

Eve shrugged a little. She had focused on _not_ thinking about Sean. Even though she knew she'd never end up marrying him, it still hurt to be rejected by someone and told you weren't good enough. "I guess I am too," she finally admitted. "We would have never made it as a couple."

"You'd be his secretary one day. Can you see yourself now? Glasses, tight, scratchy suits…"

"Oh shut up!" Eve laughed, shoving Jack. "He didn't own me, you know."

"Mhm."

She rolled her eyes. Maybe it really was a good thing that they had broken up. She had forgotten how much both Heather and Jack hadn't liked him. And even though she wasn't going to let her friends run her love life, it was always good to have your friends like the guy you were with.

"Well, here it is." Eve put her hands on her hips and smiled at the club before her. It was only a few weeks old, but the 'o' in 'Sour' had already burned out. Maybe Matt had been right about appearance not being everything. He didn't seem to like the place. But didn't most people hate their jobs? She didn't, but plenty did.

"Looks like a decent place. Let's go."

**!**

He was hoping she'd show up that night again. It was only wishful thinking, but something told him that she'd be back. Yet, it was getting late and he had yet to see those exotic green colored eyes and the firm but gentle smile she had. Eve… what a pretty name for a pretty girl.

His boss had him working out of sight for a while. It was driving him crazy since he couldn't keep up with the people around him. For all he knew, Eve had come and gone already. Working in the small casino area kept him from a decent view of the club.

Maybe it was just the way life worked. Why would such a beautiful girl ever be thrust into his life? No, scratch that. A beautiful girl with a good head on her shoulders, it seemed. It was just too good to be true. She wasn't interested in him like he had been with her. Or maybe he scared her away. Perhaps he was too overbearing and she disliked that.

Shaking his head, he handed out a few cocktails to those gambling around him, wishing he could know the truth behind what she thought… that is, if he got to see her again.

**!**

Eve was disappointed as she didn't see Matt behind the bar. It was just like her to come on the night he was probably off. Shaking her head, she bought two cocktails for herself and Jack and flopped down on the first open bar seat, Jack coming up beside her.

"He's not here, I'm guessing."

Eve glared. "No."

"Maybe he's on break or something. Wait a little bit. I'm going to go into the casino for a bit. Will you be alright alone?"

Truthfully, she just wanted to leave but since she had practically begged Jack to come with her, she nodded. "Take your time. I'll just get drunk for a bit." Her lame attempt of humor was dismissed by Jack with a roll of his eyes and then she was alone, staring into the crowd of dancing people, the image much like the night before when Heather was practically groping Colin in the corner.

Time passed slowly. She sipped her drink, eyes still peeled for just a hint of Matt. But every time she glanced around, she was only met with stranger's eyes and smiles.

"Okay, the game room sucks," the familiar voice of Jack's spoke. "Let's go."

"Yeah," she muttered. "I'm just wasting my time here. Matt's not here…"

Jack hooked his arm around hers and smiled sadly. "Sorry, Eve. Maybe next time."

Eve and Jack were close to the door when she heard someone call her name. Turning around, she scanned the crowd, looking for the memorable voice. Then, Matt broke through the crowd, a smile on his face. Her heart melted. His eyes were beautiful.

"Eve," Matt greeted. "I didn't know you were here!"

Jack's arm tightened in Eve's grasp. She smiled at Jack to let him know it was Matt, but Jack had intent eyes on Matt. She shrugged it off and looked back at the brunette bartender. "Likewise."

"So… what are you doing here? Did Heather move on that fast?" His beautiful, teasing smile warmed her heart. It was probably a good thing that he remembered what she had spoke about last night.

_I want you,_ Eve thought. She loosened her grip from Jack's and walked forward to meet Matt. Behind her, Jack still stood frozen. "Well… actually, I um… I came to look for you." She watched his expression carefully. He didn't seem to give her any answer in his stature.

"Is that so?" A timid smile took over his face. "I was hoping you'd show."

"Really?" She couldn't hide her excitement.

"Yeah. Last night didn't end the way I wanted it to after I dropped you off."

At the mention of that, Eve remembered Jack from behind her. She smiled and pointed in a general direction toward the door. "That's Jack, Heather's brother. He decided to come with me tonight. Matt, Jack. Jack, Matt." But when she turned around to look again, Jack wasn't there. "Oh… maybe he went to get a drink." Where had Jack gone?

"Oh… well, can we talk for a minute… in private?"

Eve was quick to agree and followed him toward a quieter portion of the club. They stood in silence for a moment, both looking to the floor. "So…" Eve mumbled, staring at the wall. "You wanted to talk?"

"Uh… well, yeah. Listen, Eve. I wasn't honest with you last night. I should have said some things and I didn't."

He stopped, looking at her. _God, she's beautiful,_ he thought happily. Her eyes were such a pretty color of green, a lightly colored lime even. Her curves were amazing. Honestly, he could see himself making out with her, his hands traveling along her waist. So why wasn't he? Oh, right. He was supposed to be talking. Matt forced his eyes back up to her face and smiled.

"Look, it's a bit short notice… but um, Eve… would you like to go to dinner with me tomorrow night? I have off and I'd like to get to know you better.

A shot of confidence shot through Eve and she smiled slyly. "Are you asking me on a date, Sir?"

He leaned against the wall, laughing a little. "I do believe I am. Do you except?"

For a moment, she just stared at him. This couldn't be happening. Heather had been right again, Matt was interested in her! If only every date could be this easy. "I do," she finally answered, letting her sly smile form into a genuine one.

"Great. I'll pick you up at seven, is that okay?" Over the next few minutes they exchanged information and then Matt had to go back to work. Eve trotted happily toward where she had spotted Jack seconds before, gripping his cell phone number in her palm tightly.

"Jack!" she cried happily, pulling him around. He didn't look happy. "What's the matter?"

Jack pulled her outside in response, not even allowing her a chance to breathe. When they were outside and back into the NYC air, he stopped her and glared heavily. "You will not see him again, understand?"

Eve almost laughed in his face at how serious he was. What was he, her father? "Why?" she giggled. "Is Jack _jealous_?"

"_No_," Jack seethed. "Trust me here, Eve. Don't speak to him again. He's trouble."

"You've got to be kidding me, Jack. I just planned a date with him."

"What?" Jack threw his hands in his hair. "Oh, _no_. You are not."

"Jack, you're not my father."

They were walking now and Jack still looked furious. "Just… trust me… Eve. Don't talk to him again. It's for your own good."

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**So, Eve went to find Matt! AND he asked her out, yay! But what does Jack mean... :O Is he jealous, do you think? Please read and review! :D**


	5. I could use somebody like you

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Yo, peeps! :D Glad you liked the last chapter. Don't write Jack off completely yet. He does have good intentions, I promise, haha. Or do I...? ;D We'll just have to see. Thank you for your wonderful reviews like I always say, I still love reading them! Hmm... is that it? I do believe so - OH WAIT. I think "Use Somebody" by Kings of Leon would also be a good fit for this story. If you don't know the song, take a listen to it. It's not only fitting, but it's a beautiful song in general. Yep, now that's it. Enjoy!

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Eve walked in silence back to Jack's apartment to which she was again staying at. If she hadn't of been drinking and if it wasn't dark, she would have walked home. Jack hadn't given up. He wouldn't give a reason to why she shouldn't see Matt, but the constant bickering didn't end until they were back at his place and Jack was glaring at her while Eve shot daggers at him.

"You know what, Eve?" Jack snapped angrily. "Whatever. I don't care anymore. Do what you want."

"Good," she also spat. "I'm going to bed. Don't bother me, asshole. I'm sorry you're a jealous jerk."

Once she was out if view, Jack slumped into a chair, staring hard at her door. He didn't want to be angry at her, he truly didn't. And without telling her the truth, she would never believe him. But knowing Eve, if she was conscious of the truth, she'd freak out for weeks. He couldn't do that to her. He knew how stressed she was already thanks to her modeling career being nearly frozen.

"I just wish you'd listen," he muttered, slipping his hands over his face. "I don't mean any harm."

**!**

"Are you going to tell me what happened last night or are you going to sit there with a pissed off expression on your face _all_ morning?" Heather asked the next day while they sat at a local Starbucks. "Because if it's the latter, I could have better things planned for today than dealing with my obviously PMSing best friend."

"Shut up." Eve glared at Heather and took a long, deliberate sip of her coffee so she didn't have to speak. Last night, she hadn't slept well. Jack's voice had appeared in all of her dreams and on several occasions she found herself seeing Matt in a dark place only for him to disappear before her eyes. She'd call out to him but he'd shake his head and evaporate before her every time.

"Jeez, what happened last night?" Heather wondered again. "Did Matt say something stupid? Because I can totally get Jack to kick his ass. You know, he's small but he's lightening quick."

"Jack is lucky I don't kiss his ass myself."

Heather's eyes widened. "What did Matt do?"

"No, the question you should be asking is: _What did Jack do_?" Eve took another sip of her vanilla latte and then set it back down, looking out the window. It pained her to think that Jack was trying to hurt her. But there was a small part of her that believed maybe Jack was right. Then common sense set in and the word jealousy seemed the fit better.

"Oh my God, did Jack punch him?"

"No."

Heather gave one of her signature confused-but-still-sexy looks that seemed to work wonders on every guy she met. It was obvious why guys fell for her so easily. She had a full arsenal of moves to use that got a guy every time. They didn't stand a chance after the war of Heather. She won… _always_. "What do you mean then? I'm confused!"

"He told me to stay away from Matt."

"Why?" Heather cried. "Why would he tell you that?"

Eve shot her another glare as people looked at her loudmouth friend. "I don't know," she replied in a lower voice. "But he's being an asshole now too. I don't care what Jack thinks. I'm going out with Matt tonight."

"Did he tell you why you should stay away from Matt?" Heather inquired, taking a rather loud slurp of her cappuccino, head tilted at an angle that also represented a 'Heather look'.

"No. That's why I think he's jealous."

"Jealous?"

Eve blushed a little. "Maybe it's all in my head, but I've always thought that Jack's had a lingering crush on me for years now. Nothing major, but it would explain why he's hated pretty much every guy I've gone out with."

"Honey," Heather chuckled. "We've all hated just about every guy you've gone out with. With the exception of that Michael Allen guy. He was decent…"

"Still!" she exclaimed in annoyance. "It makes no sense."

"I agree… but it's weird. Maybe he has a legitimate reason."

Eve shook her head, thinking about Matt's smile and those warm, chocolaty eyes. "No… he doesn't. I like Matt and he's a good guy. For once, I'm getting the fairytale ending."

**!**

A few hours later, Eve was standing again in front of a stack of clothes that happened to cover her bed. Snuggle was sitting nearby, watching with his curious bright yellow eyes although he never moved. She'd gone through skirts and pants, dressers and one-suits and came to find her entire wardrobe splashed across her bed. It was always like this on dates. She could never find something to wear. But tonight as also special. The more she had thought about Matt, the more she was sure he was different from all the city losers she'd dated since high school.

It took several more minutes, but finally she decided on a plain denim skirt and a tank top that fit her snugly, but still covered what she owned and made her look presentable. She finished off the entire with a light pink and see-through shawl, stopping to admire what she had put together in her mirror.

"What do you think, Snuggle?" she asked the cat. "I like it."

"Meow," Snuggle responded, blinking his big eyes. Then, he hopped off the dresser he had positioned himself off and took off toward the living room, leaving Eve to just stare in the mirror and hope everything that night would go well.

**!**

Matt stared at his clean-shaven reflection with slight disgust. He missed the person he had once been. All the optimism and the cheer about life he believed had been gone for a while now. Eve was a glimmer of hope in his life, but he was still depressed. There had to be something his life was for. It couldn't just be a girl. Life couldn't just be about that. There were stories about people living the high life. Celebrities who had fun everyday and didn't have a worry in the world. He didn't necessary want that; he wanted happiness, that was all.

But he was determined not to let Eve out of his sight. It was a miracle in itself that she had come to the club the night before and seen him. Sometimes, at least in some cases maybe, there were second chances. Tonight he would woo Eve in every way possible, make her see that he was a decent guy who she should give the chance of romance at.

Closing his eyes, he could picture himself holding her tightly, his hands roaming her – but not in an animal-like way, but a kind, loving way where they were both content. He wanted to know what it was like to kiss her. Were her kisses gentle and curious, or did she have some Latin spice in there? Matt was so curious. She was an open adventure, a new island that had not yet been explored by people. Somewhere on that island there could be a cure to something for people. Eve could be his cure.

Opening his eyes though, he came back to reality. A date didn't mean any of this. It was a date. Dinner and if he was lucky, maybe something after. Key words being 'if he was lucky'. Matt didn't mean to be a pessimist but the past few years had dragged him down. The pain didn't stop for a long time.

But one more look in the mirror tried to remind him of hope. Tried to remind him that Eve could be his way out of the pessimist lifestyle forever.

Matt pulled his keys from the table and made his way out of the door to his apartment. It closed quickly, slamming behind of him because it hadn't been put in correctly. The entire apartment building needed serious remodeling and looked terrible, as if he didn't need another reminder that his life was complete and utter crap.

He began walking toward the address that Eve had given him, trying to keep his spirits up. He didn't want Eve thinking that he was some low life bum who thought life was about nothing. Because he honestly didn't think that… he was just depressed. And he had been for a while.

When he finally came up to her apartment building, he climbed into the elevator with a feeling surging through his body. There had to be some catch. There had to be some reason that tonight had gone well so far. As the elevator opened, Matt walked proudly toward her apartment and knocked, trying to look as confident as he had felt talking to her that night. And when she opened the door, his heart beat after and his mind went straight to the gutter.

"Hey," she spoke in her adorably beautiful, yet strong voice. She smiled at him in a way that made him weak to the knees. He wasn't sure how she did it, but she did. The woman looked stunning. Her hair fell around her shoulders, straight and frizz free. Eve had on a skirt that made her legs look amazing and the shirt she wore gave her wonderful curves.

"You look great," was all he could muster as she stepped out of her apartment.

She smiled sheepishly. "Thanks," she told him and then blushed slightly. "Sorry, I'd invite you inside, but I'm not exactly the most neat person on this Earth."

"It's totally fine." He couldn't keep his eyes off her. Not only her body, but her face too. God, she was gorgeous. Matt wanted to know everything and anything about this girl. That much he still knew.

"So… how was your day?"

Small talk. Not good. He smiled. He hadn't done much, but she didn't have to know that. A simple, clichéd answer would do. "Good. How about you?"

"It could have been better." Matt loved that she hadn't gone for the cliché answer. A girl like that was attractive to him. Hell, everything about Eve was attractive to him.

**!**

The knock on her door nearly sent Eve out of her skin. She rushed toward it and then managed to stop herself and calm down. There wasn't a reason to get overexcited and make a fool of herself the first minute. Taking a deep breath, she ran a hand through her hair and checked mirror one last time. _Now or never_, she thought happily and opened the door.

"Hey," she muttered timidly. He was even better looking than she remembered. A smile of pure bliss made it's way onto her face and she felt the butterflies take flight in her stomach.

"You look great." She felt his eyes on her body and she closed the door, shaking her head. The polite thing to do would be to invite him in, but he didn't have to know she was a slob yet.

"Thanks," she finally spoke, feeling her cheeks heat. He probably thought she was an idiot. "Sorry, I'd invite you inside, but I'm not exactly the most neat person on this Earth."

"It's totally fine." A breath of air finally got sent into her lungs as she finally relaxed somewhat.

It grew quiet quickly and she found herself anxious to say anything to him. Silence wasn't a good thing. So, she let the first thing that blurted from her mouth say, "So… how was your day?"

"Good. How about you?"

Eve nearly cringed thinking about it. It could have been better." _It shouldn't have said that. Damn, I'm an idiot. Everyone says good. Now I look like I complain too much. He's going to think I'm so stupid and-_

"So, I hope you don't mind, but I picked the place we're eating at already."

Again, she relaxed. "That's fine."

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**Like I said, Matt's got some serious problems in this. They'll be told in time. What do you think will happen on their date? Hmm... Please read and review! :D**


	6. Sugar kisses and suspicions

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Heyyy! :) Glad everyone enjoyed the last chapter. Some real action will be coming soon enough. But I thought the date between Matt and Eve was important. You'll find out soon if Jack was lying or if there is something more going on, I promise. But for now, thank you SUPER much (yay bad grammar! :D) and enjoy!

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When they arrived at the restaurant, Eve was pleased to find it was a place that she had been to several times before. Not only that but they also served good food and had decent waiters. So if everything went wrong that night, at least she could count on that. Although, she didn't expect it to go wrong. If she thought before she spoke, things would work out well.

"So, have you been here before?"

"Yeah, actually. Heather loves the food." The waitress had dropped them off at a table near the back of the restaurant, giving them complete privacy. This made Eve happy. She hated when it felt like everyone was staring at her. "She comes here a lot so she's dragged me on occasion."

"Your friend Heather just gained major points in my book." Matt gave her a smile that would have made her weak to her knees. There was just something so genuine about his smile; something about it she knew was the truth instantly. There wasn't even a doubt in her mind, Matt was a good guy.

Eve laughed. "She's alright."

"You said she dates around a lot, right?"

"Yeah. She doesn't stick with a guy very long. It's a shame, I feel bad for the guys she dates. All of them are good people who just got swept into Hurricane Heather and her category five heartbreaking."

Matt laughed at her joke and stared at his menu for a moment. "I think I'm going to get the Eggplant Parmigana. If I remember correctly, they make it wonderful here."

"Sounds good to me." Eve stared at her menu too. There was just something uneasy about ordering in front of a guy to her. She didn't want to look like she didn't eat and order a salad, but she also didn't want to look like a pig and order the fattiest thing on the page. Finally, she decided on a garlic chicken piece that made her look decent.

"So, Eve… what can I learn about you?"

Matt's question through her off guard for some reason. Of course, it was usual on dates to learn more about the opposite person but for some reason, the question made her anxious. What if he turned out to be just another Sean? Eve quickly shook the question out of her head. How silly! He'd never be a Sean. "About me?"

"Yeah," Matt laughed.

"Oh, well… I'm twenty-four and I live alone in Manhattan, obviously. I model as a job but finding a job in this economy has been tough as of late. The last gig I did was Macy's and it wasn't much for the checkbook, you know?"

"I totally understand. Bartending doesn't pay much either. I pretty much live paycheck to paycheck these days."

A solemn mood overcame their table as this sunk in. It seemed they had that in common. The economy was hitting everyone in different ways and sometimes, people were learning, you had more in common than you think. Eve was glad she hadn't fallen into the hands of someone with money. Money wasn't all that important to her and she didn't want Matt to feel as if she was just a gold-digger who would take his money and leave.

Finally, Eve broke the silence. "So… what do you do for fun?"

"What do I do for fun?" Matt mused. "I really like to just relax. Really just sitting down on the couch and know there is nothing waiting to be done. The full feeling of being content." He laughed a little as he placed his hands on the table. "Don't laugh at me, but I like candles. They help me relax."

Candles? Eve couldn't help but smile widely. A man who enjoyed candles? She wasn't aware that any man did. Matt was gaining points by the bucketful each time he talked. "I think that's great."

"Really? My brother used to make fun of me for it."

"You have a brother?"

"Yeah," Matt quickly muttered. "So what do you do to relax?"

Part of her didn't want to notice, but she couldn't help but do so as Matt changed the conversation so quickly. For whatever reason, he didn't want to speak of his brother. She brushed it off as a bad relationship and recovered quickly, contemplating herself what she did to relax. It took a lot for her to do so. Her mind was on a constant highway full of appointments and meetings, lunch with Heather here, a dress fitting for a modeling gig there. When she really did get to relax, it came in short periods of time.

"I like trashy MTV shows," Eve admitted with a shy smile. "I don't know why, but they make me laugh and I guess you could consider that relaxing. Usually, I'll grab a carton of Ben and Jerry's and spend the day lounging around in my pajamas while I watch a marathon of them." Normally, admitting this would have embarrassed Eve but she was sure that Matt wouldn't make fun of her for it. There was an odd sense of trust she already felt with him.

Matt pointed a finger at her. "I love them too! God, it's great to see that someone is trashier than those you know."

Eve giggled. "Yeah. A lot of the girls on those shows remind me of the girls I know from high school. Heather and I used to make fun of them. A good amount happen to have babies now and are in unsuccessful marriages. And to think these were the girls who ruled high school."

A dark look came over Matt's face for a moment but was gone so quickly she thought maybe she imagined it. "Yeah, those girls aren't all that cool."

Soon enough, their meals had arrived and the two date-goers fell into a comfortable silence of eating. Eve was pleased with herself. She hadn't said anything horribly stupid yet and Matt had put her at ease quickly. She felt comfortable around him, like he wasn't about to judge her at a moment's notice like Sean did on the first date, or complain when she didn't order something that would look good on his behalf. In fact, Matt was being the perfect date. He hadn't overstepped his boundaries in any way and he was polite while being attractive to her at the same time.

A part of her couldn't help but wonder if this was all too good to be true. Jack's words had maneuvered their way into her head, clouding it with negative thoughts. She looked at Matt for a moment as he ate his dinner, wondering if in some way; Jack had been telling the truth. She had dismissed it as jealousy, but what if it really wasn't? What if her best friend's brother knew something she didn't?

Then, the dinner and the talking came to mind, as well as the night at the bar, and she rejected the pessimistic thoughts again and found herself thinking about how quickly she was falling for Matt. He was everything she wanted so far. There wasn't any ounce of her pretending that she liked him: she truly did.

**!**

He was waiting for something to go absolutely and positively wrong on the date. Not only had he had a nearly perfect dinner with Eve Torres, but they had walked their way to Central Park where they were now discussing interests on a park bench under the stars. It was everything Matt could have wanted their date to be… but he almost wanted there to be some kind of mishap just so his anxiety would fall. Nothing _ever_ worked out this well for him. But there she was, in all her beauty and striking personality… making his night.

"But yeah," she was saying, a smile on her face. "Heather and I met in high school and since then, we've pretty much been inseparable. She can be a total pain in the ass and at times, I wonder how we ended up together as best friends, but at the end of the day, we have each other's back and I know she's one of the few people I can turn to when things get bad."

"That's great," Matt told her honestly. He hadn't had a best friend in a few years. They had all left him a long time ago. Matt ached for someone to tell everything to and know they wouldn't go spill it all over town. Looking at her, Matt wondered if Eve could be this person. She had become nothing short of flawless in the time he'd known her, but there had to be some kind of fault in her personality. She wasn't perfect and she knew so. That was what made her even more attractive to him.

Eve smiled at him; one of those absolutely stunning smiles that made him want to kiss her. He was waiting to bring her home to do that though. Matt wanted to remain classy. Unless she made the first mood, he was going to wait. "Yeah…"

"Do you want to go get ice cream? There is a great place I know about just down the road."

Her eyes lit up. "That'd be wonderful!"

As she began to walk in front of him, Matt couldn't help but be in complete awe of her. She had such a way she held herself up, such a grace in her walk. It was so attractive.

Soon they came to the ice cream parlor owned by couple in their mid-forties. Matt ordered himself a chocolate milkshake and Eve ordered a vanilla cone with sprinkles. As they began to eat, he found himself staring yet again. It probably wasn't a good thing to be so engrossed over her but he couldn't help himself.

"I've had a really great time tonight, Matt."

Her words brought him out of his staring. "Really? I'm glad."

"Yeah," she told him, a bright smile on her face. "This is probably one of the best dates I've had in a long time. Truly."

The moment was right; he could feel it. So, he leaned forward and let his instincts take effect. Her lips were an equivalent of sugar and ecstasy to him. She kissed him back, latching one hand on his neck and deepened the kiss before finally breaking apart, a wide and pleased smile on her face.

"You didn't tell me you were that good of a kisser."

"All you had to do was ask."

A soft laugh escaped her lips and if she hadn't of put her ice cream back into her mouth, he would have gone for round two. "Thanks again, Matt. This has been great."

**!**

"Good night, Eve. Sleep tight." Matt leaned forward to place a kiss on her cheek, offering her one tinier smile before she opened her door and slipped inside. When it was closed, she leaned against it in complete bliss, feeling her cheek as if it would hold some kind of power. The night had gone perfectly. She too wondered why nothing had gone wrong.

But she wouldn't force it. If fate wanted to work out for her finally, she'd let it be.

It was only the fact that now Jack's words were haunting her; she couldn't get them from her head. There was no way Matt could be perfect, absolutely no way. The question was: Did Jack lie? Or was there something Eve wasn't aware of? The idea scared her. It seemed honestly unfair for her to finally find someone she could be herself around only to have thoughts like those in her head instead.

Eve slumped down on the floor, feeling her good mood drop somewhat. What didn't she know?

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**I want Matt to kiss me! :( Hehe. And hmm... what's gonna happen? Please read and review! :D**


	7. The scars we wear remind us

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Heeeeeey! Sorry I haven't updated in a little bit. Life ain't full of free time, I'm afraid. :( But I do have an update now! Yay! Thanks for the reviews, if you liked the last chapter, you may love this one too. It's the most action packed so far in my opinion. Okay? Okay! Please enjoy!

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Luckily, over the next few days Eve began to become busy, barely unable to sit down, let alone think about Matt and his possible faults. First, she had to go to a dinner with Heather and Colin to which she met her best friend's newest boy toy and found him to be just like the others—with the added fact that he was drop dead gorgeous with these piercing blue eyes. But polite and Eve respected that. Hopefully, Colin wouldn't get his decent little heart broken by her tornado-like best friend.

Second, she found that not doing laundry for nearly a month left a big mess. Eve spent hours in the laundry mat, trying to make sure everything she had worn was clean.

And finally, out of some odd luck, she landed another modeling job. Considering how scarce the work had been as of late, she found this to be a blessing. The model the company wanted had come down with a bad case of the flu and was unable to make her shoot. Someone had suggested the Latina model and there she was, about to take a photo shoot with a man by the name of Harvey Green.

Heather was in her corner as well, watching from the sidelines. Well, she wasn't actually watching. She was texting Colin and making googly eyes at her phone every so often.

"Look this way, Ms. Torres. Now give me your temptation face. Show me something that would want me something I can't have." Green walked around Eve; getting every angle he could of her while she tried to give him want he wanted. "Good, Ms. Torres. Good! Now give me a blissful look. Pretend you just went on a perfect date and the man is everything you ever wanted."

At the sound of this, Heather looked up and stifled a giggle. Eve ignored it and found herself thinking about Matt as Green snapped away. Her face had to be priceless, a true feeling of delight spreading through her at the thought of him. His smile, his laugh… the way he looked at her and only her. Everything she wanted.

"Great, Ms. Torres! Really, really nice. I got some wonderful shots so far. Now, let's change you into this outfit and then we'll take some shots on the bench over there, okay?"

Eve wasn't really listening though as she took the clothing from the photographer. He wasn't aware, but he had sent her mind to a place that could be potentially dangerous: her feelings for Matt.

**!**

Across town, Matt was trying to fix his leaking faucet with an old wrench, bent over at an odd angle while the constant _drip_, _drip_, _drip_ sounded in his ear. He'd been at it for nearly an hour now and nothing he seemed to do would be right. The faucet had broken months ago, a least three months back, but the landlord had told him he didn't have the money to get it fixed and that he'd have to live with it.

"One day," Matt muttered as he stood, staring at the sink in anger, "I'm not going to live in this shit hole and I'm going to be leaving somewhere nice where the faucets are made of gold or somethin'."

Shaking his head, the man went toward his couch and flopped down on the equally as loud fabric, closing his eyes. A woman filled his eyes. A woman that happened to be Hispanic, one with a spicy smile and a quiet yet confident demeanor to her. He could hear her laugh, feel her grip on his hand… almost taste her cheek. "Eve," Matt whispered.

He hadn't called her yet. Not wanting to seem desperate, Matt decided he was going to call her the next day and ask her out on another date. Since the first one had gone so well, the brunette couldn't see why she would object to another one… unless she had lied on the first date about her feelings. But Eve didn't seem like the lying type to him. He could only pray he was right.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Matt was interjected from his thoughts and brought back to the present. "Coming," he grumbled miserably, annoyed that someone had the audacity to even think about disrupting the one thing he had going for him then.

It rang again only seconds later.

"I said I'm coming," Matt snapped quietly. "God, people can be so impatient." Over the next few seconds, someone kept ringing the door bell over and over again. Finally, when Matt opened it, he was met with a sight he didn't think he'd see. "What are _you _doing here?"

The person on the other side was the last person he wanted to see. "Hello, Matt."

"How'd you find my address? Get the fuck out of here. You're not welcome here."

"Come down, Matt. You think you could move on so easily, huh? Think the past isn't going to follow you and hunt you down? No one has forgotten, you know. It's still talked about _every_ day."

Matt gritted his teeth. "Go the fuck away."

"What's the matter? Can't stand to hear about it? Because you know that you lied. You know what really happened." The person chuckled darkly. "You know you just got lucky."

"Get the fuck out of here, okay?"

The person shook their head and began to pull their hand out of the pocket of their jacket, revealing a gun. "I'm sorry, Matt. You thought you could get away with something like this, but you won't. I'm going to make sure you pay."

"Is that loaded?" He couldn't take his eyes off the gun. For some reason, he was frozen at the door, staring down at it even though he knew he had a better chance of not getting killed by simply slamming the door in the person's face. "Leave…"

"Oh… no, Matt." The gun rose in the person's hand and before Matt could let it sink in; there was a loud popping noise, followed by running footsteps in Matt's blurring mind. He glanced down at his stomach, seeing an increasing spot of blood on his old white t-shirt.

"Fuck," he grumbled, crumbling to the ground. With the last ounce of all that he had in him, he dialed the only number he hoped would answer. It rang several times before going to the voice mail. "Eve," he mumbled, voice tired. "Get… get… help…"

**!**

"I want fast food." Eve grinned at Heather, her eyes lit up. She hardly ever treated herself to junk like that and after a successful modeling job, she wanted to pig out just a little. "McDonalds for sure."

"Fine by me," Heather said absently. "Can I see your phone for a second? Mine died. I just want to check something since we share the same provider."

"Your phone wouldn't have died on you if you hadn't texted on it all day long," Eve reminded her in a sing-song voice.

"Shut up." Heather grinned though and flipped open the phone of her best friend's. "Weird, you have a missed call from… oh my God; you made his name a heart?"

Eve's eyes widened as Heather stared at her missed calls. She grabbed the phone from her and tried not to look too eager. She had wanted Matt to call her for a while now but didn't know if he was going to. Maybe she had read his feelings wrong after all… since it had been three days without any contact, perhaps. But before her was a missed call and a voice message.

"Yes!" Eve cheered, smiling widely. "Let me check it."

The look of happiness was completely gone in seconds after hearing the message. In its place was one of confusion and fear, a bit of annoyance, but mostly confusion. She stared at the phone for a moment, as if it would give the answer to the question she was thinking. Matt had called and asked her for… help? But there was something wrong with his voice… it sounded weak… tired…

"What time is it?"

"About two… why?"

Eve glanced at the missed call. Only twenty-five minutes had passed. Quickly, she tried to remember where Matt had said he lived. "Come on!"

"Where are we going?"

Eve grabbed Heather's hand and pulled her along, ignoring her best friend's pleas of an answer. She didn't have time. The more she thought about it, the more she thought something could be seriously wrong with Matt. Maybe he fell down a flight of stairs, or maybe he had choked on something… but she needed to get to his apartment complex.

When she did find it, another five minutes had passed. But what alarmed her most was the array of police cars in front of it. She walked up to the taped up scene and tapped a friendly looking officer on the shoulder. "What happened, Officer?"

"A man was shot."

Eve nearly fell to the floor. But it might not be Matt… right?

Before she could ask anything else, the man next to him, also a police officer said, "Well, they took him to the hospital, Fred. We're still looking for this Eve woman he was mumbling about. I don't think she lives in the building so this is going to make it difficult to find her…"

Eve nearly fell again. "Excuse me… I'm Eve."

The officers looked up in shock and slight awe. "Do you know a Matthew Hardy?"

It was him! Eve nearly began to cry. "Yes…"

"I'm afraid you'd better get to the hospital a few blocks from here. Mr. Hardy has been shot and is in critical condition at the moment." She backed away at this and nodded, although nothing was really sinking in… Matt had been shot? What was going on?

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**Whoa, right? I told you! Who shot Matt? And will Eve go to the hospital to find him? You'll find out... Please read and review! :D**


	8. Relief

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Heeeey. :D So not much to say. Glad the chapter was enjoyed and thanks for the reviews. Enjoy!

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"What's the matter, Eve?" Heather and rushed to her side as she nearly collapsed before her. Her normally bubbly and non-serious friend was now staring at her with intent concern, eyes terrified. "What happened? Why are they're police here?"

Eve tried to speak, but found she couldn't find her voice. Finally, she whispered, "We need to get to the hospital," with a new found determination. Slowly, she got up and dusted off her clothes, looking at the street they were on. She calculated the time it would take in her head and then pulled Heather by the arm.

Heather kept protesting from confusion at first but she soon enough realized something serious had happened and that Eve wasn't going to tell her right away. They walked quickly as a pair toward the large building that spanned nearly a block, seeing so many other people outside, some in tears, some happy, some with expressions unreadable. Eve wasn't a fan of hospitals. Ever since she was a kid and her childhood best friend had been inside of one for nearly a month, she had hated it. It was like a trap that held sorrow and only sorrow.

"Can you _please_ tell me what is going on now?" Heather whined, grabbing Eve by the shoulders. "Why are we at the hospital? And where is Matt?"

"He was shot," she gravely whispered back. "I need to find him now."

"Why?"

"Because he was _shot_," Eve repeated with annoyance, "and when he called me before, he had left me a message saying get help. I…"

"Eve, it's not your fault," Heather replied with understanding. The Hispanic woman fell into the arms of her best friend and sobbed for a minute, knowing she could be the reason Matt lived or died because she didn't answer her phone. "But you don't know what happened yet. I'm sure Matt is fine… let's go!"

The two friends walked into the hospital together and walked up to the front desk. "I'm looking for Matt Hardy," Eve said in a soft voice, trying to remain calm. She had to keep Heather's words in her mind. Everything would be fine. Everything would be fine. "Do you know if he was put into a room yet?"

The girl behind the front desk smiled apologetically at them after checking her computer. "I'm afraid he hasn't been admitted yet. But if you take the hallway to your right and go all the way down, you'll run into the ER and you could check there. If he was brought through there, they may not have had the time to get the information down and they may know where to lead you before I would."

Eve was too frightened to speak again so Heather thanked the woman and led the now shaking Eve down the hallway. It almost seemed crazy to her though. She had only known Matt for about a week and there she was nearly sobbing over him. But he was everything she wanted… and something like this couldn't happen.

By the time they got to the ER, Eve was pretty much trembling uncontrollably so Heather had to do the talking again. "His name is Matt Hardy and he was shot. We're looking for information on him."

Another young woman behind a podium nodded. "Yes, he was brought in about a half hour ago. Let me see what I can find on him. I haven't heard anything for my records yet."

Heather led Eve over to a seat and made her relax and got her a cup of coffee. "Drink this and try to calm down. I'm sure Matt's fine."

The woman came back, a small smile on her face. "He's in surgery right now. It may be a while before you're able to hear more."

"Is he okay?" Eve managed to stutter out, her voice shaking almost as much as she was.

"I don't know, ma'am. I just know he's in surgery at the moment."

To Eve, this wasn't enough. Although it meant that he was alive, it didn't mean that he would be okay. There was still a haze over the situation and there was nothing she could do about it. She considered her options. Other than Heather, she didn't really have any other true friends to call, since Jack wasn't speaking to her and vice versa, so she believed she was stuck.

Then, it hit her; all the hoopla that Jack had been trying to get her to believe about Matt being trouble. What if he was right and this was a part of it? She scolded herself for thinking that way. Jack was just jealous… right?

**!**

Eve began to wander around the ER in terror as the minutes passed, hoping to hear from a doctor or a nurse about Matt's condition. She was still unable to stop shaking and almost all eyes in the room were on her. Heather had given up on trying to consol her and was sitting alone in the corner with a watchful eye.

She took a chance and walked over to the vending machine where a man who looked to be a teenager or maybe in his early twenties was standing, trying to decide between something obviously.

He turned to her much to her surprise, ignoring the look of confusion and tears streaming down her face. Then, he smiled at her with this smile she was sure had to be one of the best she'd seen in a while. "I can't decide what to get, sorry," he said with a laugh, his voice hinting an accent.

"It's okay," Eve muttered quietly. "I'm not even sure what I'm getting either."

The man turned around again, finally giving in to her look. "Are you alright? I mean, I know that's a silly question to ask at a hospital but…"

"Thanks," Eve smiled for a moment. The man seemed genuinely nice and just wanted to be so obviously. "I'm waiting for news on my uh… I guess boyfriend."

"Ah," the guy said back. "I'm waiting for my little sister. She's got a bad ear infection."

"Oh." With that, they greeted each other goodbye and Eve stood for a moment, awed by the man's act of kindness. People weren't kind to each other anymore. You were lucky if you got a hello out of someone if you happened to _know_ them. Forget about strangers. Glares all around!

When she came back from the machine, Heather was talking to a doctor, nodding her head enthusiastically with a smile. "Oh, Eve!" she greeted. "This is Dr. Andrews. He's Matt's doctor here."

"Is Matt okay?" Eve asked nervously, toying with her shirt. That was all she wanted to hear: those three words. Matt is okay.

The doctor turned to her. "Well, he did lose quite a bit of blood from the gunshot wound but he was lucky enough to miss any major organs or arteries. Some by just inches, actually."

"So he's okay?" Eve repeated.

The doctor smiled warmly. "He's going to be fine. Of course, the wound was to his abdomen so he's going to be very sore for the next few days. We recommend bed rest actually… a good week at least depending on what he does for a job as well as painkillers. He's in quite a bit of pain."

All of this didn't matter to Eve. She just wanted to see Matt. "Can I see him?"

"Sure. But one at a time."

Heather put her hands up. "By all means."

With a deep breath, she thanked the doctor and made her way toward the area to which Matt was in. Heather told her she was going to move the car and would meet her in the hospital café when she was ready. So, all alone, she went to see Matt. As she stopped outside of his door minutes later, she was suddenly so afraid. Why? She had no idea. Matt wasn't a monster. He was a good guy with a good personality. Just because he had gotten hurt didn't mean he had changed.

So she knocked at this explanation in her head.

"Yeah?"

Eve walked in slowly, trying to make sure he recognized her. Much to her surprise and much to the boost on her ego, his antagonized face lit up in happiness. "Eve!"

She smiled back, glad to see him okay after all of it. "Hey, Matt."

"You must have gotten my message."

She nodded as she took a seat beside of his bed. "God, are you okay?"

"They sewed me up pretty darn well. I'd say so."

Eve's eyes trailed down to his stomach area, staring at the white bed sheets and sighed. "I'm glad. I was worried. By the time I got your message, they had taken you out of the apartment."

"Yeah, the doctor told me my neighbor came home and found me unconscious."

Eve was curious now. "What happened?"

There was a brief awkward silence and then Matt looked up darkly. "I don't want to talk about it."

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**Hmmm... why won't Matt talk about it? You'll find out in timeeee... Please read and review! :D**


	9. Anxiety

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Whooooooaaaaa. I am soooo freakin' sorry for not updating for so long. I never meant to... but life is not full of free time anymore. Wah. Oh well, but I do have an update and I hope it's good enough to make up for my sucky updating as of late. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and read and please, please, please: Enjoy!

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Eve bit down on her lip, unsure how to go forward with her questioning. It was obvious in more ways than one that Matt knew what happened. She couldn't foresee any reason why he wouldn't know the events that took place earlier, considering the doctor did not mention any head injuries or similar things. Therefore, she had concluded he knew.

"Did you know the person?"

Instant distress flashed across Matt's face, although he tried to mask it with a shrug. "I told you," he whispered. "I don't know."

"Who was it?" Eve prompted, determined to get it out of him. How could he lie like that? It was so surreal. "Do I know them?"

Matt's eyes darkened and he pointed his index finger at her, his voice low as he replied, "I _do not_ know."

But he did. She was sure of it. "Okay, okay," she said instead, baking off with an apologetic smile. Leaning slowly backward, she sank into the chair and looked at him again carefully. His expression had returned to unclear, something she couldn't read.

"Do you need anything?" Asking Matt that kind of question was the sign of a truce; she didn't want to cause him anymore pain (at least at the moment while he was still weak) by asking questions. She figured in time she would know the truth about the events that transpired earlier.

He glanced at her, shrugging his shoulders like before. "Water would be nice. My throat is parched."

Quickly, she complied, "I'll go buy a bottle for you. Just let me check with one of the nurses and I'll be right back. Okay?"

Much to her surprise, he smiled and nodded. "Thanks, Eve."

**!**

It truly was a relief to the young woman that Matt was alright. She liked him a lot—despite the fact that he was hiding something from her. But she didn't know the details anyway and she couldn't judge him for that. But she knew she liked him and wanted to be with him. He was absolutely perfect and caring, and—she stopped. How had the "secret" that Jack had mentioned go unseen in her mind? As she walked toward the vending machine, she wondered if it had anything to do with Matt's injuries.

But was there a secret?

There were so many ideas that could lead her in opposite directions if she wasn't careful. She had known Jack for years—Matt for days. Why shouldn't she believe her best friend's brother when he told her something? But then again, Eve did believe that Jack did have a crush on her. Would he be devious enough to make up a lie so she wouldn't see him again?

Eve put the money in the vending machine and froze. What if… what if it was Jack who had come after Matt? He wasn't the violent type, but jealousy could make people do odd things. And Matt had acted strangely when she asked if she knew the person. Maybe it was Jack and he didn't want her to get upset.

It made sense. Horror ripped through her at this and she leaned against the wall, closing her eyes. Could it really be? Did her friend really attempt murder on Matt?

"Oh God," she moaned. "I have to talk to him."

**!**

"What do you mean you have to go?" Heather cried as Eve gathered her things, trying to remain discrete with her words. She didn't want Heather to catch on at all that she was worried or scared. "An hour ago you were ready to build up a campsite if it meant seeing that Matt would be okay."

Eve brushed a bang out of her face and tried to smile in a pleasing way. "And Matt _is_ okay. Now I need to go."

"But where?" Heather demanded. "I don't get it!"

"Somewhere." She pulled her purse over her shoulder and looked around once. Matt had fallen asleep when she returned his water, which had helped her excuse there. You didn't need one for a sleeping person after all. She had left a note for him if he were to wake up and wonder where she went.

But she had to know if her conscience was right. Was Jack behind this all? Considering Matt wasn't going to open up anytime soon, she had to find out now.

"Where is somewhere?"

"It's not important, Heather. Just let me go."

Heather grabbed her retreating best friend by the arm and looked her in the eye with severe interest. "You're not leaving until you tell me what is going on. I know you, Eve. You're acting detached from everything and the only time you do that is when you're worried so… what's going on?"

Carefully, she pushed her best friend off her and smiled reassuringly. "Everything is fine. It's just been a long day. I forgot something at the shoot from earlier I need to run and get or I'll lose it. Okay? I'll stop by your apartment before I go home tonight. Everything is fine."

She hated lying to her best friend, but she couldn't possibly tell her instead that her brother was a possible suspect in the case of Matt's injuries. For one, she wouldn't believe her. For second, it was her brother and there are some things in a friendship you just don't cross.

Although still doubtful, Heather let go and nodded. "Okay, Girl. But call me if anything happens. You know that… right?"

"Of course." Nothing would be happening. "I'll see you later."

**!**

The late summer air breezed around Eve as she made her way in good time toward Jack's apartment. Oddly enough, she didn't have a game plan for this. Instead, she was walking into the apartment without anything but the questions and worries on her mind. Normally acting on her emotions didn't lead her off to well.

"I'm just checking up on him," she reminded herself, dangling the spare key she had in her hand against her thumb. He had given her that key about a year before just in case she was in the area and needed a place to stay when Jack wasn't around. Now it played for something sneaky; she was going to use the key to look around his house for any signs of foul play when he was working.

It only took a few more minutes to get into the building. Walking up the stairs, she wondered what she was supposed to be looking for. It wasn't the best idea going into something like this without any idea of the crime scene or anything at all to go on. What was she looking for? Anything that led to hatred among Matt and Jack?

That was silly.

After looking around her, Eve stuck the key into the door and slipped inside, quietly closing the door and flicking on the lights. The room illuminated around her, showing the tidiness that Jack happened to live in. He certainly wasn't the type to leave a mess around, unlike his twin sister.

"Now what?" she mused.

Eve walked around the room, looking at various objects and inspecting them somewhat like a cop would. Finding nothing, she flopped down onto the couch and closed her eyes. Maybe this was stupid. Jack was her friend, after all. Why would she expect to find anything incriminating in his apartment, even if he was jealous? He was a mature adult who didn't need to resort to crazy ideas like violence.

But wait.

She sat up, shocked. Down the hallway, in the bathroom was a white t-shirt hanging off his shoulder stall. The shirt looked to be dry and on the shirt, splattered in several spots was bright red blood.

Gasping, she shot forward and ran for the door, pulling it off the wall and touching it. It was dry, not to her surprise. "What the—?"

_Click_.

"_Shit!_" she hissed, realizing that Jack was home. Figures the one day he'd come home early was the day she went snooping… and look what she happened to find.

But where to hide? She pushed the shirt into her bag and dove for under his bed, holding her breath. Seconds later, Jack's voice filled the apartment as he was on his cell phone.

"Relax, Jesse. It's fine. I doubt that we'll get caught anyway. There was no one around and I got rid of the evidence." Jack laughed. "Yeah, I know. It was pretty ingenious of me, right? I mean, who would have thought of it? I know, he's scum and he deserved it. Okay… well, I'll talk to you later… okay?" A pause. "Bye."

Eve's heart was hammering in her chest from under the bed. Had she just witnessed the confession of Jack's crime against Matt? "Oh my God," she whispered. "He… he did do it."

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**Gulp! Look what Eve found. I assure you... things are going to get CRAZY ... haha. Please read and review! :D**


	10. Don't go looking in my eyes tonight

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Hey all. :) Not too long from an update... eh. Well, kinda. But I do have an update. For the next few chapters, they will be titled as the following (I just find I should tell you this): This chapter: "Don't go looking in my eyes tonight." Next chapter: "Don't go telling me lies tonight." And then the chapter after, "Don't go promising me skies tonight." Which is part of the chorus to Hanson's "Crazy Beautiful." Think about them for a little bit, they play into the chapters... and as always, thank you very much for your reviews. I appreciate them. Enjoy!

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Jack began to meander around his apartment tiredly, dropping his bag down on the floor, which contained his laptop and other important papers. He stopped by the coffee machine, turning it on and listening to it sizzle for a moment before turning toward the bathroom. "That's odd," he murmured, "I could have swore I left that shirt on the shower."

Eve looked down at the shirt in her hands. Was she holding onto the shirt that contained Matt's blood? The thought sickened her and she let it fall the few inches to the floor with a soft _thud_. Jack had a sharp memory and that worried her. What if he realized that someone had been in his apartment? She wasn't looking to start an argument with him. She just wanted to know the truth. However, as she lied there, she wondered if she truly did.

Jack had been her friend almost as long as Heather had. When she wasn't around, she relied on him to tell her the truth in cases of advice, or just be there when she needed to talk. He'd been there when Eve broke up with her first serious boyfriend, while Heather was away visiting her cousin in California and couldn't help in person. Squeezing her eyes shut, she shuddered. He'd sat there with her the entire night long while she sobbed into his destroyed jeans, her make-up ruined, practically a walking stereotype. Never once did he complain about doing other things with his time. No, he held her and whispered that she deserved better.

How could there even be a possibility that he was responsible for this now?

Eve choked back a sob, her heart suddenly heavy. She didn't want him to be responsible of the crime. She wanted him to tell her that it was just a paint job gone wrong on that shirt and that she was completely out of her mind for even proposing the idea. To laugh at her and pull her close, that wrinkly smile reassuring her every worry; that was all she wanted.

But that didn't happen.

"Who's there?"

Eve cursed silently, wiping away her tears. Emotions got her into trouble yet again. His feet began to come closer toward his bedroom, slowly but surely making their way in the direction of her choked sob. She wished he'd give up on finding the culprit of the sob and go back to wondering where his shirt went. At least that way, she could escape without noticing.

Jack entered the room, walking slowly around each side of the bed. There was soft _thud_s every so often, making her believe he was inspecting things around him.

_Don't look under the bed_, she prayed silently.

As if her prayers had been answered, Jack mumbled something and walked back out of the room, his feet shuffling slowly behind him. Any other time, she would have rolled her eyes and scolded him on this. He never picked up his feet when he walked. It was one of her pet peeves and it drove her insane. Sometimes, she believed he did it in spite of her.

_Click_.

"He's gone," she whispered thankfully, crawling away from the dust and other unidentifiable objects beside her. She stepped out from under the bed, shoving the red-covered shirt back under. Then, she dusted off her clothes and began to walk out of the room, her fear still much to present. At least now, though she could leave without him knowing she was ever there.

"What are you doing in my apartment?"

_Oh no_, she thought miserably. _I'm screwed._

Eve turned around, facing Jack with what she believed to be an unreadable expression. He stared accusingly at her, his eyes curious and angered at the same time. "Hey, Jack. I just thought I'd stop by."

"… By going under my bed?" he accused, narrowing his eyes.

So he had known she was there…

Eve smiled timidly, her expression faltering. "How did you know?"

_"I know, he's scum and he deserved it…"_

The look of anger also faltered for a moment to one of amusement but it faded right back into the other face, the scary face. "Your feet were sticking out from behind the second headboard."

"Oh. Well, I guess I'll never be too good at hide-and-seek, huh?"

"Eve," Jack said back, "What were you doing under my bed?"

"I didn't think you'd want me here."

_"There was no one around and I got rid of the evidence…"_

He laughed a little, shaking his head. "What? You _know_ there was a reason I gave you a spare key to my place. Why wouldn't I want you here?"

_"I doubt that we'll get caught anyway…"_

In only a few seconds, she had made a decision. She had to know if it was him. If it wasn't, he'd only become confused. And if it was, she would ruin one of the best friendships she ever had.

"Because then you couldn't get away with your crime."

Jack's face began alarmed. "You know about that?"

Eve tried not to show her own panic as she backed up a few steps. He did it. Jack shot Matt… "Yes," she said quietly but clearly. "I found the evidence."

"Eve, look, you have to understand. I had to. He just wouldn't give up and he'll be okay… I was just teaching him a little lesson." Just a little lesson? Eve couldn't believe what she was hearing. Was this even the Jack she once knew? It surely didn't seem like it.

"How is _shooting _someone _just_ teaching them a lesson?"

Jack looked perplexed. "Shooting someone? What are you talking about?"

"_Matt!_" she screamed, losing control. How could he even do something like that to her? "You shot Matt! I saw the shirt and I know you did it. I heard the phone call!"

Jack looked stunned. "Matt was shot?"

"Uhm, _yeah_. You shot him!"

Stunned became anger. It was like a leveling of emotions. "I didn't shoot him! How could you even accuse me of something like that, Eve?"

Her mind was whirling. She couldn't think straight, nor could she truly even hear anymore. It all seemed much too crazy for anyone to even process. Right before her eyes, Jack was arguing a crime he had just admitted to doing minutes before.

"I saw the shirt."

Jack laughed without emotion, something that scared her. He then held up his arm, which was covered with some kind of medical tape and gaze. "I accidentally sliced myself this morning with a box cutter when trying to open something at work. I came home earlier and got changed. I didn't _shoot_ anyone."

"I don't believe you." The tears in her eyes showed her pain. Because she wanted to… but she couldn't.

"Eve, I didn't fucking shoot him."

Eve backed away. "Please… just let me go. I don't want to talk to you."

"Eve!" Jack yelled as she raced for the door. He didn't want to tell her the truth. He couldn't tell her the truth. Because if she knew the real truth, she'd be even more frightened. But he found there wasn't any other choice anymore. It was either that, or she'd believe Jack to be someone who attempted murder on someone else. "Eve!"

"Don't talk to me."

He raced after her. "Search his name when you get home. I dare you to. Go home and search his name and New York University. You'll see who is telling the truth."

**!**

Even though Heather was expecting her back at her apartment, Eve didn't go there. She walked hazily down the busy New York City streets, keeping her head down while she cried silently. Pain hurt. She knew that for a fact. Sometimes, emotional pain could hurt worse than physical pain… and this was one of those circumstances.

Jack didn't want her happy.

He wanted Matt dead.

He hadn't succeeded, but … he could have. And she would have gone on to believe Jack wanted the best for her while the man who was interested in her and wouldn't hurt her would be buried underground.

She got to _Sweet and Sour_ only ten minutes later, ordering her first drink of many. It was about three hours later, on her eighth drink when the bartender, an older man cut her off. He narrowed his eyes at her and shook his head. "No more for you, Ma'am."

Eve sunk her head to the sticky bar. This could not be her life.

"Uhm, excuse me?"

Eve looked up to see the person Heather had been messing around with next to her. What was his name? _Cody? Cory? Caden?_

"Yes?" she asked.

"Uhm… I'm Colin. I'm dating your best friend. You're Eve, right?"

"Right," she said tiredly, wiping her sticky and sunken eyes. "What do you want?"

"Heather is looking for you," he said, sitting down. "She's really worried."

He went on for about five minutes about this. Eve zoned out and closed her eyes, thinking about how nice it would be to be in Matt's arms right then, him holding her tightly, kissing her on the nose. Not this guy, not Colin lecturing her about her best friend's worries.

"I have to go," Eve mumbled. "Bye."

"Hey, wait!" Colin yelled. "I'm supposed to get you home! You can't leave."

"I have to go," Eve repeated. "I need to go… find him…"

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**I now have a feeling that .Hopeless. Rockstar. is going to search "Matt Hardy New York University"... hahaha. ;D Sorry, no. I just like teasing her. She's a pain, but she's a cool pain in the butt. Anyway, whatcha think of the chapter? Who do you believe? And where is Eve going and who is "him"? I hope to update this again soon... Please read and review! :D**


	11. Don't go telling me lies tonight

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Hello peeps! I am very excited for this chapter. I think it's one of the most emotionally charged ones I've written so far, and I'll admit in parts it's a bit hard to understand until the end. But I think you all will get it. Thanks for all the reviews as usual, especially to .Hopeless. Rockstar. who is determined to be the best reviewer out there, haha. Anyway... uhm. Don't hurt me! *runs* Enjoy!

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The late night air had a next to nothing effect on Eve while she dashed through the streets, her feet pounding on the pavement. The tears she had cried had dried on her face, making her normally glowing skin feel tight. There was nothing on her mind; it was oddly clear. She felt the pain pulsing through her chest, a burning sensation that told her to slow down, but she didn't. She didn't stop running until she reached her destination, the hospital.

Even though it was past visiting hours, Eve punched her fingers on the elevator and got on. Matt was now on her mind. His somewhat childlike look, the innocent yet the pain in his eyes… His voice, creamy and cool, very sure of itself with just a hint of a Southern accent. That smile. She couldn't forget that smile.

_That_ smile.

His smile.

Amazing.

Breathtaking.

_Wait_.

She stopped as she got off on Matt's floor, her mind swirling once more that night. The good feeling that the alcohol had left on her was fading off and she was exhausted and confused. What was she doing here? She ran all the way downtown and she no longer remembered the reason. Eve leaned against the wall, beginning to cry again, this time for a reason even she didn't know. The alcohol had fogged everything, made her a mess. It may have tasted good on her tongue, but now it made her feel dirty.

Jack.

Involuntarily, she groaned. "No."

"Eve?"

Matt was standing a few feet away from her, relying heavily on an IV rack to hold him up. There was an intense grimace of pain on his face, proving he wasn't in any condition to be out of a hospital bed. But the look of pain was also laced with concern and fear, maybe for Eve.

She didn't answer him, unable to find her voice. She struggled to wipe away the tears, the remainder of her long-ruined make-up coming off on her shaking palms. Her body began to shake farther as it registered to her: she looked terrible. This was a girl that had a modeling career. Eve was built up to look amazing day in and day out, poked and prodded for perfection. Matt had never seen her like this, truly. Eve didn't want him to see her like this, another mistake she had stupidly made.

"Eve?" he asked again, struggling to shift himself forward.

Eve sunk to the filthy hospital ground, her body racking with sobs. There wasn't a reason for this. She had no reason to cry like this; she was just a mess. Alcohol tended to do that to her, that's why she didn't drink plenty on any normal occasion. One or two and she was usually done.

_Jack_.

This was all his fault.

_Stupid Jack._

It was his fault that she was sitting on a floor infested with germs, looking like a pathetic, little girl unable to speak for herself. It was his fault that she had ditched her friend and got drunk instead. And it was his fault that she couldn't look Matt in the eye.

"Eve, what happened?"

He continued to say her name, pleading for her to talk to him. Every time she tried to even look at him, she broke down further, sure that something would happen, something else to make her day worse.

"What is going on here?" a voice bellowed, a large, very masculine nurse coming toward Matt and Eve. "Hardy, you need to be in bed. You're in no shape to be out of bed yet. Who is this? What is going on?"

Before Eve could look up at the nurse again, another voice spoke out, "I'm sorry, she's with me. Let's go, Eve."

Eve peered up to see Heather near the elevator, a look of distaste and worry on her face. "Is this true?" the nurse barked, obviously not happy that Eve had compromised Matt's recovery.

She pathetically nodded.

"Then go," the nurse barked again. "Now."

Heather walked forward confidently, dressed in a mini-shirt and heels. She pulled Eve to her feet, gave her a look of disappointment and then dragged her toward the elevator. She didn't get a chance to look back at Matt and she wasn't sure she wanted to.

_It was nearly dark in the room, the only light coming from somewhere above her. She felt as if she was trapped in a box and she couldn't see. "Hello?" she mused. "Is anyone here? Where am I?"_

_"I don't think she should trust him…"_

_"She's a big girl."_

_"In case you've forgotten, he's been—"_

_The lights flicked on, revealing a room covered in newspapers, except when Eve walked closer, she couldn't make out any of the writing. She touched the gray paper, tracing her feeling over a rectangle on the wall, very confused. The entire room was a gray haze; there wasn't a door or a window._

_"Where am I?" she asked herself, out loud. "I don't know where I am."_

_Another voice came into the room, somehow. "Would you trust him? Look closely for answers. They're closer than they appear."_

_Suddenly, the blurred newspapers became clear, revealing the same newspaper cover over and over again. Eve inched forward again, reading the headline. "NYU student accused of raping fellow classmate…" It wasn't the headline that made Eve begin to tremble; it wasn't even the idea that it was NYU either. What made her tremble was the picture to her right. The picture was of Matt Hardy._

The next day, Eve woke up on Heather's couch with a pounding headache and a sore body, most likely from the running she had did the night before. There were familiar voices in the kitchen, one of which belonged to Heather, the other she recognized as Colin's and the other… _Jack_.

"I'm going to do a Starbucks run," Colin said coolly. She looked up just in time to see him plant a kiss on her cheek, making Heather beam. "I'll get you your regular, Babe."

Heather nodded, still smiling as he walked toward her door and exited the small apartment.

"She looked so helpless last night," Heather mused quietly, her smile finally fading. "I walked into the hospital to find her on the floor, sobbing like a child. I don't know what happened."

Guiltily, Jack looked away. "I don't know."

This angered Eve. She stood up quickly, walking into the kitchen with a purpose. It didn't matter to her that she probably still looked like a wild woman; she just wanted to make Jack see she knew the truth. He knew he had at least _something_ to do with the night before.

"Eve," Heather gushed, running up to greet her best friend. "You're awake."

"Mm," she mumbled, taking a chance to look heavily at Jack. He was quick to avert his gaze toward the living room, as if it were the best thing in sight. "What time is it?"

"Nearly eleven," she replied. "I was beginning to get worried."

Eve sat down on the chair farthest from Jack and looked at the clock for conformation. "I'm fine."

"Are you?" Heather challenged, obviously ready to scold her best friend for her crazy behavior the night before. "I found you on a hospital floor _sobbing_."

"I'm fine."

"Eve—"

"I don't want to talk about it," she snapped, glaring right at Jack. He seemed to believe that Eve was going to give him up, but she didn't. She wanted him to do that for himself.

Heather sighed, pulling a cigarette out of her bag. "We'll talk about this later, Eve."

"I thought you quit?" both Eve and Jack asked at once. They looked at each other, equally shocked but then looked away swiftly.

She laughed at their question and shrugged. "Once and a while I'll pick one up."

Jack rolled his eyes. "Nasty habit."

"You're one to talk," Eve muttered quietly. She ran her hands through her hair as Jack shot her a look of annoyance and Heather just watched as she flicked her cigarette in an ashtray. It remained silent for several minutes until Colin returned with four coffees, Heather's favorite, a plain black coffee for Jack, a latte for him, and a similar cup of black coffee for Eve.

"I brought you back milk and sugar because I wasn't sure what you took," Colin explained.

Eve smiled, despite her annoyance of Jack and Heather. "Thanks."

As soon as she took a sip, she remembered the dream from the night before. She stood hastily, looking at Jack in shock. "What do you know?" she accused. "What did you mean yesterday?"

Jack took a step back and stared up at her, equally shocked by Eve's erratic behavior. "What?"

"You know what," Eve accused. "You told me to look something up."

Heather spoke, "What's going on?"

"Not now," Jack said warningly. "Later, Eve."

"No, _now_," Eve threatened. "Tell me now what you meant."

Jack only shook his head, looking slightly scared. "I won't tell you, Eve. I can't."

She stood up, marching out of the room, leaving her friends in a taken aback silence. She continued down her path until she reached Heather's computer room. From there, she turned on the somewhat new laptop and waited for it to load. When it did, she quickly got onto the internet and with trembling fingers came to Google's homepage. Swallowing quickly, she forced the words out. _Matt Hardy, __New York__University_

What came up nearly sent her heart in her throat.

"Eve, wait!"

But it was too late. Eve had already found what Jack had been hiding from her all along. Eve was crying silent tears as she read the article in full:

_NYU student, Matt Hardy, has been arrested today on the suspicion of the rape of fellow college student and girlfriend, Jenna Hubs. Hubs told Police that late Monday night, while resting in her dorm room the suspect, Hardy entered with his key and forced Hubs into intercourse. Although Jenna Hubs said no, Hardy allegedly continued, and before leaving beat her until she couldn't see out of one eye and with several large bruises. Hubs called for the police around __midnight__, telling police that her boyfriend Matt Hardy of __North Carolina__ had committed the crime. Police later arrested Hardy at his respectful dorm. Matt Hardy is not available for comment at this time. Updates will be posted on this as they become available._

"Eve," Jack spoke softly. "I didn't want to tell you…"

Eve still wasn't listening though. She shoved past Jack, who watched after her with sadness and ran toward the door of the apartment. She was out on the street before anyone could stop her, running once more to the hospital. She made it there in record time and despite the protests of hospital security, ran up the stairs to the fourth floor, bustling into Matt Hardy's room, where Matt was watching TV.

"Eve," Matt said, obviously alarmed. He tried to sit up, but failed. "What happened last night? Are you okay? Eve?"

She pointed one finger at Matt, her entire body shivering_. _"You filthy pig! How could I ever trust you?"

He looked even more so alarmed at her accusation. "What?" he asked.

"You raped someone!" she screamed, voice breaking. "And I… and I trusted you… Jack was right! He was right… oh dear God, I need to get out of here."

"Eve, listen to me. You need to listen to me. I didn't rape anyone."

"Lies!" she cried, her voice breaking once more. She looked at him with tears pouring down her already filthy cheeks before she turned to walk out of the room. "You got what you deserved."

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***smiles* I used my awesome Journalism skills to write that article...! (Twitter peeps might find the humor in that). AGAIN: *runs* Yikes! Please read and review! :D**


	12. Don't go promising me skies tonight

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Well. I think the last chapter was sure... pretty ... exciting? I guess that's the right word. But in a bad meaning. A bad exciting. Matt as a rapist? Very weird, even just to write. Anyway, thanks for the reviews. I knew that chapter was not going to be well liked, haha. I hope this chapter makes up for some of that. Enjoy!

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Eve stumbled her way home. She never felt more lost and lied to, filthy and unworthy. She had known Jack for years and had pushed his concern away because of a guy she had fallen for. A guy that she had known only for days at the time. What kind of idiot did that? Since she got home, Jack and Heather had called several times, but she found she couldn't pick up the phone; she didn't want to here the 'I told you so'. Heather was probably confused, trying to inch an answer out of her twin, but it wouldn't work. That much she knew.

She wandered through her house, tearing open her freezer, revealing a nearly full carton of ice cream. After she pulled it out however, she noticed she wasn't hungry after all. He had wiped the appetite right from her stomach. It was amazing that she had not yet up heaved everything from the past few days.

There was so much going through her mind. She had no idea what to do with herself, despite the fact that she knew it wasn't healthy sitting around in a dark apartment. Going back to Jack or Heather was out of the question, as was going to eat, so what could she truly do? This time, she would not be going to a bar to solve her problems.

Soon enough, she was wandering through Central Park, hearing the sounds of nature and happy people chatting like they should be. She could hear their voices and see the blurs of their faces, but she didn't see anyone in full. Could one of these people be the girl that Matt had raped? Could it be possible that she'd be his next victim? The thought made the terrified girl shudder.

A corner Starbucks came into view only a few minutes later. She entered, the strong aroma of coffee grinds and vanilla welcoming her. There was a friendly looking Barista looking right at her, probably wondering what kind of creep had come into their coffee shop.

"Can I help you?" the boy, no older than twenty, asked.

Eve shrugged. "Can you fix a shattered heart?"

The boy smiled apologetically. "No, I can't do that. But I could make you a drink."

She also shrugged and took a seat. "Surprise me."

He nodded and got to work. Eve fell into a trance over the noises that came with the coffee giant, slowly fading in and out of oblivion. All she could think about was how close she had been to giving in to Matt. If he hadn't of gotten shot, she probably would have made a deeper move on him, more than just a kiss that time. Would it have been the time he forced her into something more?

"Here's your drink, ma'am." She peered at the warm cup before her, staring at it as if it were foreign. Heather always ordered something similar to that when at Starbucks, but she wasn't sure if she could down something that strong. "And don't worry… its just hot chocolate. My mom always said it helps you think." He gave her another small, reassuring smile and then walked back to the counter, slowly beginning to clean up after himself.

She glanced back down at the drink. Hot chocolate was one of her favorite drinks, but in summer? Then, with a shrug, she picked up the drink and took a sip. And if only for a moment, the fog and the mess of her life was just a memory.

**!**

Later that day, long after Eve had headed back home and called back her best friend and her brother (making sure to tell them that she was okay and would be okay), she had settled into her couch, blanket covering herself and only the tail of Snuggle, who was snoring softly beside her. Oh, the easy life of a well nurtured cat. What problems did they have? Which toy to play with that day? Which side to sleep on? The pondering made her smile.

She was watching an old romantic comedy, barely paying attention. Although the hot chocolate had made her feel better, it didn't mask everything. She could still see the shock that registered on Matt's face after revealing to him that she knew what he had done to his ex-girlfriend. The hurt that had come after. How could he even look hurt? She was the one that was lied to.

A soft knock came on her door. It didn't surprise her; Jack said he might stop by just to make sure she was okay (looks like they really trusted her). With a small, unsure smile she got up and walked toward the door, not bothering to check to confirm it was indeed Jack. Who she saw was certainly not Jack. And how this person was standing there she wasn't even sure.

"Matt," she gasped, the only word coming to mind, his name. He looked absolutely terrible, as if he had been in a huge fight and lost pitifully.

He tried to nod, but swayed instead. "Can I come inside?" he pleaded, eyes fluttering. She looked doubtful, but he added, "Please?"

She wanted to say no, but she found she just really couldn't. It was almost a relief that he had come to find her, even if she was still terrified of what he had done. Finally, she stepped aside and he stumbled inside, nearly falling onto her couch. She couldn't help but notice he was holding his stomach with an intense grimace on his face.

The question that came to mind was, 'Are you okay?' but she didn't want to ask. If she asked, it meant she wanted to talk to him. Well, she did want to talk to him, but not like that. She wanted answers. How could he hide that he raped someone? She couldn't trust him.

Matt finally looked up at her. "Do you have any pain meds here?"

She nodded, still refusing to talk.

"Could I take a few and then I'll tell you why I'm here?" Once more, she nodded and took off to her bathroom, pulling a bottle of Advil from the cabinet. Then, she filled a glass with water and came back, handing him the bottle and the water. He downed four of the tablets and then handed all the things back to her. It remained silent in the apartment.

Eve glanced around, wondering if it could get more awkward and terrifying.

"Look, I shouldn't be here right now and I'm sure you don't want me here. And I'm sure my doctor wouldn't agree with me signing myself out of the hospital." That much she could agree on. It was obvious that he was in a huge amount of pain. "But I needed to talk to you."

Eve blinked.

"Can you please just say something to me?"

Eve sighed, "You don't want to hear what I'm thinking right now."

Matt winced, and this time she didn't believe it was from physical pain. "Fair enough. Look, I'm sorry for not telling you of my, uh past. But that's what it was and I wanted it to stay that way."

Was she trying to say that being a rapist was something that needed to be pushed into the past?

"I never served any time for that … accusation and the charges were dropped as well." He looked at her, trying to ignore the severe pain in his stomach. "I need you to believe me when I tell you, I didn't rape anyone."

"Hard to believe when there is an article and several other things pointing me in that direction," she snapped quietly. Normally, she would have apologizing for snapping at a person, but this time, she didn't feel the need.

"I know it all seems that way," Matt said softly. "But the media isn't always truthful, Eve."

"Then what is the truth, Matt?"

"Jenna was my girlfriend and we did have sex that night… but it wasn't rape. It was consensual and after that… well, I noticed I didn't feel the way I used to feel about her anymore. So, we talked for a while and I told her that it wasn't working out. She was kind of a drama queen to begin with—not my type whatsoever. So, when I told her I wanted to break it off, she threw a hissy fit. She threw clothes everywhere, started hitting herself, throwing things at me. I couldn't leave her there like that. I was worried she'd hurt herself, you know?" Eve blinked. "And then, I got her by the arms and for a moment, I wanted to kiss her again and I had no idea why. Then, she spit into my face and told me that I would be sorry for breaking up with her." A quiet moment. "The next morning, the police came to my house and arrested me on alleged rape."

Eve pushed hair out of her face and changed the way she was sitting. The story did seem to make sense, but it could be easy enough to make something like that up. How could she believe him, a guy she barely knew, over a Newsday article? The people there were a little more credited than him.

"Eve, you have got to believe me," Matt pleaded. "I never raped Jenna. I loved her, but it wasn't the way I used to. And well… it ruined everything. When she accused me of rape, I lost my full scholarship at NYU and I couldn't pay for a college that expensive, so I had to drop out. I tried to move back home, but my brother was ashamed to even be associated with me. I don't know what my father thinks – I haven't heard from him in years. So… I lived on unemployment for about a year. Then, I got sick and tired of feeling sorry for myself and got a job at Sweet and Sour, living in my shithole apartment. And it's the truth. I swear that it is. I promise you."

She began to twist her hands together, trying to hold a mess from coming undone. "Look, Matt. It's a lot to take in right now. I'm not saying that you're making this all up—" Even though he very well could be "—but I need time to think it over. Let me help you home and I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

He looked at her, disappointment clear on his face; something he couldn't hide. But it wasn't a complete "go away". At least there was hope. "Okay," he finally replied softly.

Eve nodded and pulled out her cell, calling for a cab. Then, a few minutes later, she helped Matt walk outside—how he got into her apartment and walked all the way from the hospital without passing out was beyond her—and let him lean against her to catch his breath.

The cab pulled up and she got in with him, wanting to make sure he did get home safely. She couldn't explain why she felt the need to do this, especially considering she wasn't even sure she could still trust him. But she did it anyway. When they came up to that ugly apartment building, she paid the cab driver, refusing to let Matt complain about it.

Once inside, Eve looked around. "Where is your elevator?"

He snorted softly. "We don't have one."

She raised an eyebrow. "Well, okay. What floor are you on?"

He groaned a little just thinking about it. "The fourth."

Eve shrugged and began to walk toward the stairs, careful to keep Matt near her. If they weren't careful, it would be very easy to rip out already damaged stitches – and that would be painful for the both of them.

It was a long, painful walk up the stairs to Matt's apartment, which ended with Eve opening Matt's door with the key, turning on the lights and helping him lie down on his couch. She then quickly made sure he had enough to survive a day or so and then smiled softly.

She was almost out the door when he stopped her. "Thanks," he whispered. "I owe you… I do. And I'm going to prove to you that I'm innocent in this. I swear. I promise you that, Eve."

She shook her head, trying not to let her emotions fall. Until she was sure, she didn't want anything like that coming from his mouth. "Don't go promising my skies tonight," she whispered sadly and then walked out of the room, closing the apartment door behind her.

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**And, cue the chapter title! Haha. Yep. Well, do you believe Matt? And now I want Starbucks. Please read and review! :D**


	13. Panic

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Hi again. I know I just updated this morning, but I finished this chapter and I couldn't wait any longer to put it up. Thanks for the reviews as always and I think I found a song that fits Matt's perspective of Eve in this. "Someone Like You" by Boys Like Girls. It's very fitting. Anyway, I think this chapter is kind of cute in a way. Cute in midst of a crisis. Enjoy!

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When she got back home, she felt not only physically but emotionally drained, as well as confused and a little heartsick. As much as she wanted to hate Matt, she couldn't and it pained her to see him so fragile and broken. She wanted to believe the story he told her, but she wasn't sure she could. What if she did and it would lead to her own destruction? And then she remembered she had always been a good judge of character. Never before did she get a bad feeling from Matt. Maybe the media did pool things out of control.

She slept on this, though she woke up remembering Jack and his bloody shirt. What about that? Didn't that still mean something? It was still possible that he had shot Matt and that was still very wrong. It sickened her that one of her closest friends would do that to someone.

Eve awoke with a throbbing headache and a sore neck and back, perhaps from tossing and turning all night all. Her phone had over fifteen missed calls, half from Heather, and the rest except for one from Jack. She assumed the last call to be Matt's.

Carefully, she stood, feeling her back protest to this movement. It was another beautiful New York City summer day, as if it was mocking her and saying, "Well, your life sucks, how's this for you?" She glared at the sun while she got dressed, in hopes that she wouldn't spend the entire day a hermit in her own home. At least she could do something semi-productive, like window shop or get her nails done (the latter she had no money for).

She dressed in a sundress, covered in brown and pink flowers, something very hippie-fashion. She felt as if she were almost rebelling, as she rarely wore the dress, seeing as it wasn't exactly her style and only picked up because it was on sale.

It was then she realized she also had missed a text from the same number she assumed to be Matt's.

What she opened, however, was not a text from Matt, but one that did make her instantly think of him and his safety.

It only took her minutes to rush out of her house, running down the street at a pace that normally would have made her want to complain. She ran all the way through the twenty-five block difference from her apartment building, to his. When she got there, she was relieved not to see any cop cars and any body bags. Still she didn't find the text a good sign and she rushed up the stairs of the building and began to bang on the door of Matt's apartment.

"Coming, coming," he grumbled from the other side. It took a moment, but then he opened the door and seeing Eve, his face lit up. "Eve!"

"Hi," she said, stepping inside before she would normally ask. She pushed gently past him and closed the door, locking it herself. "I have to show you something. I'm sorry for showing up here without calling, but I wasn't sure if I didn't leave right then, if I'd make it in time. I was really worried about it and I just—"

Matt chuckled. "What are you talking about, Eve? Slow down and tell me again."

Eve glared at him, annoyed that he was taking such a serious matter so playfully; until it dawned on her that he wasn't aware yet of what had just occurred. She didn't speak again, instead flipped open her phone and shoved the text in his face. It wasn't a pleasant experience to watch his face go pale and watch him stumble for the couch.

"I was worried if I didn't get here…" she trailed off, a little ashamed to be so worried. She had to keep the possibility of Matt being… a rapist. "I didn't want you to get even more hurt."

"Can I see the number?" he asked softly. She handed him the phone, sitting beside him. She was careful as she peaked over his shoulder. His eyes were trained on the numbers but recognition didn't seem to come over his face. "I don't recognize it," he spoke finally. "Shit."

Eve sighed. "It scared the crap out of me."

She looked at the text again:

_If you thought your little boy toy was bad off the first time around, you'd better get to his apartment before __noon__ or he'll be in pieces for your enjoyment._

Matt nodded, his face still hadn't regained it's color. "Yeah…"

"Matt, are you okay?" He shrugged.

She didn't notice she was doing it, but she leaned onto his shoulder, gently taking one of his hands into hers. It was then, when they were holding each other she realized she did believe him after all. There was just a surge of strength coming forth in her body and the vision of any doubt was gone. "I believe you," she spoke out loud. "I do."

He looked at her. "The story I told you last night?"

Eve nodded. "Yes. I don't know why, but I do."

"I'm relieved and ecstatic that you do," he whispered back to her, pressing his forehead against hers. "When Jenna accused me of raping her, my life fell apart. Everything and everyone I had left me and I was suddenly alone, without a school, without a job, without a house. And then, slowly, I got back on my feet." He went quiet for a moment. "And then I met you. It was like suddenly, fate decided I was given a second chance."

There were tears coming into her eyes. Oh God, she really liked this man. "I'm so sorry," she mumbled, burying her face into him. When he sucked in a breath and grimaced, she pulled back in shock. "I'm sorry! I forgot for a moment."

He nodded slowly, releasing that breath. "It's okay. It just hurts really bad still."

She was gentle as she opened up the bottom of his shirt, seeing the large gauze pad that covered a good amount of his stomach. The parts that weren't covered were a nasty purple and black. "It looks bad," she declared. "Would you like me to make you anything? Soup, maybe?" She remembered seeing that the night before.

"Eve, I couldn't have you do that in my own house…"

She smiled. "I don't mind. Besides, you should be resting. In fact, you should still be in the hospital."

He narrowed his eyes a little and pouted. "That place is hell."

The text seemed all forgotten as Eve went to work making soup while Matt relaxed on the couch, watching TV and drinking a glass of water slowly. He was sure if he drank or ate anything heavier than soup, his body would reject it.

A few minutes later, Eve came back into the living room, setting a bowl of soup in front of Matt, on his small table. He sat up slowly, feeling the twisting feeling inside of his stomach. She helped him stay upright and then handed him the soup. Once she was sure he wouldn't fall back onto his face, she sat down next to him and leaned her head on his shoulder once again. "Is it good?"

"Great," he chuckled. "Hard to believe it came from a can."

She smiled and took a deep breath. "What are you going to do about the text?"

He sighed. "I don't know. It's not noon yet, so I don't know whether or not I should be worried or not. I can't call the police since I'm not supposed to be out of the hospital yet. Besides, are they really going to believe me anyway? Even when I was shot, the police were like, 'oh well' to me."

Eve nuzzled her head into his cotton shirt once more, taking another deep breath of what he smelled like. "I'm not leaving you here. At least if I'm here, I can call for help if anyone tries anything."

"I'm sure Owen would be so afraid of you," he mumbled back, rolling his eyes.

That caught Eve's attention. She looked at him and noticed the look on his face, one that said he had spoke too much. What did that mean? Who was Owen? "Owen?" she finally questioned. "Who is he?"

"The one who shot me," Matt mumbled. "We were arguing before he shot me… and I know he's behind this. Who else would it be?"

… _Not Jack_, Eve nearly yelled in her head happily. Jack didn't do it! He was innocent; he didn't try to kill the man of her dreams. She wasn't sure what happened with him at work, then, but she didn't care. At least she knew Jack was innocent.

"Who is Owen, though?" she clarified. "Some moron?"

Matt snorted. "Moron is the right word. However, this moron is also the brother of Jenna. We were friends when Jenna and I dated. When he found out that I so-called rapped his sister, he swore to me before I was kicked out of NYU that he'd great revenge. He honestly still thinks I raped her. Even after she realized she had no case against me and recanted her statement."

"You need to turn him in!"

"I can't." He sighed, setting down the soup bowl, leaning backwards on the couch. "It won't do me any good. If I sue him, I need a lawyer and I can't afford one. I can't even afford what I know is going to be a huge medical bill from the hospital." He motioned around his apartment building and grew frustrated. "I can't even afford to live here! And now I have to miss work and I'm never going to be able to pay my rent."

Eve was silent as he ranted on about how his apartment landlord was an asshole. She wanted so badly to help him. He was so damaged by what his ex had done; it had truly ruined his life. If only there was some way she could help him. She had no money to give; she was just as poor as he was. But there had to be something more than just company.

Matt was suddenly quiet. "It's noon."

She looked to the look where he had pointed to. He was right, it was 12:05. "Well… maybe it was an empty threat," Eve said simply. "Right?"

He shook his head, looking at Eve with a look she couldn't place. "Owen doesn't make empty threats. Let's move into my bedroom. If he is planning on doing something, we should at least be able to hide there first."

Eve was suddenly scared. What was going to happen?

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**And, well, look at that. We know who shot Matt. So, hey, Hailey? SUCK IT. Hehe. And do you think Owen is going to try something? Now I want soup too. Please read and review! :D**


	14. Men

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything WWE. I don't own Eve or Matt. I do own Heather and Jack though, as well as a few other minor OCs that will be appearing over time.

**Author's Note: **Hello. Sick of me updating this yet? HAHAHA. Well, I can't help if I wanted to write this over and over again. ... anyway, this chapter ends differently then I originally planned. I'll explain how I was going to have it end at the end of the chapter, but thank you for the reviews and keep 'em coming. I imagine this having around eighteen chapters or so, but if some kind of idea hits me, I'll go with it. You know? Enjoy!

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"I'm sorry that you have to be here," Matt said a few minutes later as they sat in his small room with Matt lying down on the bed so he could rest. Even though he was good at hiding it, she could tell the pain meds he had were not helping all that much and that he was still in a decent amount of pain. "And I'm putting you in danger now…"

She shrugged. "You're hurt and I'm not going to give someone another chance to make that worse."

A small smile crossed Matt's face. "Thanks. I appreciate that."

She sifted from lying on her elbows and sat up to lean over on his bed. "So… let's play a game or something. Like twenty questions."

He raised an eyebrow, peeking over the blanket that covered him. "Why does the idea of this scare me?"

She giggled once and leaned further onto the bed. Eve hadn't thought that maybe he thought she wanted to play this game to further find out what he had done it in the past. She only saw it as a fun way to pass the time. "Don't worry," she laughed. "I'll play nice."

"Okay," he agreed. "I'll bite. Where were you born?"

"Right here in the city," she answered, smiling for a moment. "This city is all I've ever known. You mentioned not being born here."

Matt's mind went back to his hometown and he remembered playing as a kid with his brother. It was such a wonderful memory, one that made him miss home and his brother terribly. "Yeah," he swallowed, "I was born in Cameron, North Carolina. It's a really small town, but I loved it."

"Why did you move up here then for college?" She was curious now. If you were content at a place, why would you bother to move over a thousand miles away from home and your family?

"While I loved the town I lived in, there isn't much room for growth. You're bound to work in whatever field your parents were already in. And although I love my family a lot, I always saw myself as more than a small town store owner. I saw myself graduating college and getting a well paying job in the city, sending money home to my brother and father." He rubbed his eyes, the obvious idea now painful to him. "I wish I could have fulfilled that… actually, I wished they still talked to me. I'd take that over anything else in a second."

Eve pressed her lips together, trying to think of something to make Matt feel better. When she met him, she would have never thought he was harboring so much pain. He seemed a little bitter, but she would have coined it a bad breakup, not a false rape that would ruin his entire life.

"Well, I don't know if this helps, any," she said softly, "But I don't plan on leaving you any time soon."

She got the reaction she wanted. Matt's saddened features went back into that stunning smile. "I'm glad I have you right now…" He slowly sat up and groaned as he tried to get himself onto the floor. Eve was watching with tentative eyes, as if she should cut him and tell him to stop. Then, he stopped right next to her. She continued to stare at him with her head on her hands, a content expression on her face.

"Stop looking at me like that," he chuckled, gently pulling her arms off the bed. "You're making me want to laugh and if I laugh too hard… well, it won't be pretty."

Eve blushed as he motioned to his stitches. "What are you doing?" He was toying with her hands, slowly intertwining them into one group. "Matt…"

The interlocked hands reached up and brushed a strand of hair from Eve's face. Matt was staring at her intently, eyes full of emotion and strength. Then, he pushed himself forward and kissed her gently; wanting to make sure she wouldn't push away for any reason. When she didn't, he lengthened the kiss, deepening it by opening his mouth and letting her explore what was inside.

Eve moaned as they separated, not ready to stop. With a blush, she touched her lips, feeling a little embarrassed to have just had a kiss like that in the middle of his floor. Heather would be screaming about sex if she was anywhere near them. At least it wouldn't escalade to that, since she knew Matt couldn't partake in something like that with stitches and nor would he after something as touchy as a rape subject on the mind.

Matt was first to look away to the clock on the wall. It seemed hours had passed since they walked into the room; it was nearly three in the afternoon. "Well," Eve said, noticing this. "It seems that he was just trying to scare me. I guess I should go home. My best friend will be sending out a search party soon…"

"Oh," he chuckled. "Yeah, I guess there is nothing to worry about. But just to be on the safe side, let me call you a cab and ride home with you."

She rolled her eyes. "Matt, you need to be resting, not riding around the city with me."

"I know that," he also said while rolling his eyes, "But I'd feel a lot better resting if I knew you got home safely."

"That's why cell phones were invented," Eve joked, showing him hers. "I can call you."

"I want to be with you," he told her firmly. "Please."

She didn't want him to hurt himself further, but it was still intensely nice of him to what to do that for her. Besides, Matt would be able to spot Owen on the street if he was hanging around and stalking them. "Okay," she finally decided. "But I swear, if one little stitch pops, I am sending you to the hospital and demanding you stay for a month!"

He laughed, kissing her cheek. "Deal."

A few minutes later, Matt had called a cab for Eve and they were slowly making their way down the staircase. She couldn't figure out how an apartment building could not have an elevator. Maybe it was just the daily ease that came with using the one at her building, but it just seemed ridiculous to her for one not to have one at hand.

"Are you okay?" she asked, noticing the grimace of pain on Matt's face.

"Fine," he said through gritted teeth. "Just remind me once this shit is over, I need to move the hell out of this place."

She laughed a little. "Sure."

The cab ride was quiet and somewhat swift, as the roads were not as traffic jammed as usual. They made it to Eve's apartment building within ten minutes and were out on the sidewalk, standing there while people walked by. "I'm going to follow you up," he explained to her. "I just want to make sure you're okay."

Eve wanted to tell him that she was a big girl and could defend herself, especially considering he couldn't defend her currently, but she let the man's ego continue on. "Alright, let's go, Superman."

He laughed and put one arm around her as they slowly maneuvered their way to the elevator and up to her floor. She walked up to her door, trying to see if Matt was satisfied yet.

"Would you like to come inside?" she teased him. "I have ice cream."

Her innocent little proposal sounded wonderful, eating ice cream and talking with Eve. A good night, especially when he was sore and it wouldn't involve much effort. "Sure," he smiled right back. "Sounds good."

She opened the door to her apartment, immediately noticing something was off, as if someone had been inside or had tampered with the door itself. She looked at Matt and it seemed he had the same feeling she did, as his eyes were close-knit and his eye brows were furrowed.

"Don't touch anything," he whispered to her. "If he was in your apartment, he could have rigged something to hurt you."

"Why me?" she whispered back as she shut the door behind her. She hadn't done anything… at all. Then, she happened to glance at Matt and realized he stupidity. By hanging out with him, she was instantly on Owen's bad side. He'd do anything to make Matt suffer for what he "did".

"Be careful," Matt warned her, gently making sure she stood still. He warily made his way around the apartment and then nearly jumped ten feet in the air when the discovery was made. With the movement of one finger, he pointed to her bedroom where the light was on and the door closed. "In there…"

"Oh, God," Eve moaned. "What should we do?"

Matt's eyes narrowed once more and he shook his head. "Nothing. I'm ending this for once and for all."

She wanted to tell him to stop, to remind him he had a fresh wound to the gut and taking on anyone who already proved he owned a gun was not someone to mess with. But Matt inched forward and swung the door open. As if it were fate, there was a person there and before Matt could see who it was, he punched the person from behind, knocking them into the wall. Actions began to blur as the person turned around and slugged Matt as well, slamming him into the wall and knocking him on the head. Matt fell to the floor, unconscious.

Eve felt herself wanting to squeal and run as a shadow appeared where she stood. It was then that Jack emerged, his knuckles bloody and a black eye forming. "What the hell is going on?" he demanded. "You let this filth into your apartment! He just attacked me!"

She had never been happier to see it was Jack and not the so-called Owen. Eve choked back a sob. "You don't understand," she spoke quickly, running past him to Matt's aid. It took her a second, but then she realized what had happened when Matt fell. On the shirt he was wearing was a pool of blood; his stitches had burst.

"Crap," she groaned. "Look what you did, moron!"

Jack came up beside her. "What he hell is going on, Eve?"

Matt was beginning to come to as she kneeled down beside him, gently wiping blood from his nose. She glared at Heather's brother while she shook the injured on the floor below her. "Matt?" she asked gently. "Can you hear me?"

He opened his eyes to see Eve standing there, as well as the guy she had introduced him to the night she showed back up at the club. "What the hell happened? Where is Owen?" He felt the searing pain next and saw his abdomen. "Oh, shit…"

"Owen wasn't here," she whispered back, trying to keep her voice low. "It was just stupid Jack. Come on, we have to get you to the hospital. Your stitches are long gone."

"Is anyone going to tell me what the fuck is going on?" Jack demanded. "Eve?"

"Later," she swore, standing up. She then offered her hand to Matt, helping his even sorer body to a standing position. He groaned as everything on his insides protested to the movement. Then, gently, she made her way toward the door and out of sight, hoping this night would be the last night of scares for a long time.

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**When I began to write this chapter, I thought a great idea had hit me and I declared so on twitter, lmfao. But it turns out, trying to make it so "Owen" rigged something in Eve's house was harder than it looks. And I couldn't figure out a way to do that. Besides, now this gives Eve a chance to finally fix things up with Jack too. BUT, do you think Owen is going to make good on his threat? Please read and review! :D**


	15. Safety

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing.

**Author's Note: **I know I haven't updated this in a long time and I'm sorry. Thank you for all the reviews though. I hope this chapter is good. Enjoy!

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Eve watched as Matt rested and shook her head. They shouldn't have been back in the hospital; she shouldn't be watching him in pain. She was angry with Jack, but also didn't want to blame him. If someone attacked her from behind, she would have fought back too.

She felt someone come up beside her. "You're lucky you didn't kill him," she said, not looking at him.

"I'm sorry." He placed his hand on her shoulder and she shrugged him off. "Are you mad at me?"

Eve looked at Jack, fighting back tears. "What do you think?"

"I said I'm sorry." He walked toward the waiting room and sat down, rubbing his face. "I didn't know it was Matt."

She shrugged. "I know you think I shouldn't even be with him, but I know him, Jack. I trust him."

"He raped someone, Eve."

She didn't want to tell Jack about Matt's personal life, but also wanted to show him that Matt was innocent. He had no idea how badly Owen had ruined Matt's life. She sighed. "He didn't," she said softly. "I can't tell you what happened now, but he didn't rape her."

"Why do you believe him?"

Eve smiled a little and sat down next to him. "I don't know. Ever since I met him, he's just been someone I really liked."

"Eve?" She looked up to see Matt's doctor standing there and he motioned for her to follow him. She looked at Jack and then got up, walking over to where the doctor was waiting. "He should have never left the hospital, but I understand. He lost a lot of blood and he's lucky because if he lost more, he would have had a problem."

She nodded. "He'll be okay though."

The doctor nodded. "He'll be fine. I want him to stay overnight."

Eve laughed a little and looked at Matt inside of the room. "You should make sure he doesn't leave that bed then. He doesn't want to be here."

He smiled. "He'll be fine. We're going to put him on some pain medication; he is in a lot of pain. It will make him really tired, so I'm not worried about his escaping acts tonight. Unless someone is planning to help him escape," the doctor said. "Then he might be able to stumble from the hospital."

"I don't." She laughed. "He needs to stay here."

He put his hand on Eve's shoulder and then smiled. "You can see him now."

"Thank you."

She watched as his doctor walked away and then looked at Jack who was staring at her. She motioned to Matt's room and then walked toward it, opening the door and smiling at him when he opened his eyes. They lit up as she sat down and she put her hand on his.

"Hey," he whispered.

Eve rubbed his hand, trying to keep herself from crying. It would be been so easy to lose him. "Hey," she finally whispered.

"I guess I'm stuck here tonight."

She laughed at his expression. "You are. Stay in the hospital, Matt. You need the rest."

He rolled his eyes and looked around him. "Where is Jack?"

"In the waiting room. He's sorry for what happened." She made a face, wiping her eyes. "He means well, but he doesn't think very often. It causes a problem."

Matt smiled. "Tell him he has a good hit."

She laughed and they sat for a while in silence. It was going to be a long night for her; she didn't feel comfortable leaving Matt alone in the hospital but also knew he wouldn't be awake most of the time. She was still worried about Owen and knew he wouldn't leave them alone for a while. Eve didn't want to bring him up though, knowing it would only make him upset and she did want him to rest. Matt was always trying to be stronger than he was and she knew the doctors giving him the pain medication was only going to help for a few hours.

"I'm going to get something to eat," she told him. "Your doctor will be in here soon. He's giving you some pain medication. Don't fight him. Okay?"

Matt groaned, but didn't say no.

Eve kissed his cheek and then walked from the room, closing the door behind her. She took a deep breath and noticed that Jack wasn't there anymore. She looked around, asking one of the nurses if they saw him leave and no one saw him. She sighed. While she was mad at him, she didn't want him to go. She needed someone to be there for her right now.

A few hours later, after Eve finally found Jack, who had went to get something to eat too, she was back in Matt's hospital room, watching him sleep. She didn't know what to do. While she didn't want to tell him she was worried about Owen hurting him. She didn't care what Owen tried doing to her; she just wanted Matt to get better. She knew missing work was going to make him have problems, as he didn't make enough to begin with.

"Eve?"

She looked up, seeing Matt was awake and staring at her. "Hey," she whispered, leaning forward. "How do you feel?"

"Like shit."

She laughed, rolling her eyes. "I brought you some food if you want to eat something. It's nothing great, but it isn't hospital food."

His eyes lit up. "Thank God."

Eve got up and handed him a soup and some water. She had already talked to the nurse and she had said it would be fine for him to eat. They sat in silence as Matt ate and she watched the TV. Finally, she looked at him. "Matt, I'm worried about Owen. I know he isn't going to stop. What if he comes after you?"

Matt put down his food and sighed. "I'm not worried about me. I'm worried about you."

She wanted to laugh at that. They were both worried about each other. "You don't need to worry about me. You're the one that is hurt."

"He doesn't want to hurt me. He knows that you're here now and trying to hurt someone close to me is better."

Eve sighed. She didn't understand why Owen wanted to hurt Matt. He had to know that Matt didn't rape his sister, so why did he bother? Was it fun to make Matt's life hell? Didn't what happened to him make him happy enough to leave him alone? It wasn't as if Matt was happy and living a great life. He worked at a place he hated and was never going to be able to work in a place with the rape always near him. Even though the charges against him were dropped later on, she knew.

"Listen to me, Eve. I want to stay away from me for a while. I don't want you to get hurt. He is going to hurt you." Matt sat up slowly in bed, closing his eyes in pain. "I like you too much to see you get hurt from that asshole. Please."

She smiled sadly and felt herself begin to cry as he looked at her. "I don't want to stay away from you."

"You need to." Matt took her hand. "Please."

The idea made her want to find Owen and hurt him. But she didn't think that would help anything, even if it would make him leave them alone. Eve sighed.

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**I don't think Eve is going to stay away from Matt, is she? She likes him. REVIEW.**


	16. Crash

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing.

**Author's Note: **Thank you for the reviews. We're almost at the end of the story. A few more chapters. This chapter will make you want to yell at me, I think. Enjoy!

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Only a few hours alone was making Eve crazy. She played with Snuggle for a while and even he seemed to sense that she was not in a mood to play with. Instead, she was sitting on the couch, staring at the TV screen even though she wasn't watching the show that was on. The ice cream she had bought on the way home was sitting on the table, untouched from her. It was all nearly melted anyway.

She missed Matt. She wanted to be with him and make sure he was okay. She knew if he knew she was at home, he would yell at her. He asked her before she left to stay with Jack, reminding her that she wasn't safe alone. She told him she would and then ignored everything she said. Owen wasn't going to make her not live her life.

Matt and Jack thought more alike then they knew. If Jack knew what Owen was doing, he would have demanded that she come to his apartment building and stayed there. She rolled her eyes.

"Snuggle," she whispered, watching the cat play on the floor. "I miss Matt."

Snuggle looked at his owner and then went back to playing.

She threw a toy at the cat and then sighed. She didn't know what to do with herself. Every second she was thinking about Matt and hoping he was okay. She didn't think he would try to leave the hospital, but still worried that he might. She thought about calling him a few times, but that would only make her more annoyed. And he would probably get angry as well, telling her that Owen could be listening in on her phone calls.

While she didn't really want to deal with Owen, she wished she could meet him and tell him to go fuck himself. Every time she thought about him, that's what she wanted to do. Matt would probably like that, but she knew she wouldn't get anywhere near him.

Eve began to fall asleep. She felt her eyes closing and Snuggle came up beside her, lying down next to her. Her mind was still on Matt, but her eyes closed.

A loud knock on the door woke her up and she looked around, noticing how late it had gotten when she fell asleep. Snuggle had jumped from the couch and was staring at the door. Eve looked at it for a moment and wondered who was there.

"Eve!" Matt said. "Let me in! It's me."

Eve smiled at first but then she felt herself get angry as he left the hospital. She ran to the door and he stumbled in, falling onto her couch. After closing the door behind her, she stared at him. "Are you crazy?" she asked him, sitting down next to him. "You are supposed to be in the hospital, Matt. You're lucky you made it here!"

"It doesn't matter," Matt muttered. "It doesn't fucking matter. He knows you live here, Eve. He's been watching you."

"What are you talking about?" Eve asked. "It doesn't mean that he can get into my apartment."

Matt shook his head and she stared at his concerned eyes. He pulled out a note and showed it to her; she felt his eyes on her as she read it. Her entire body felt weak as she handed it back to him. "I don't understand," she whispered. "How did you get the note?"

"A nurse gave it to me with a card. She told me someone dropped it off." He sighed, taking her hand. "I couldn't leave you here alone."

Eve felt tears come into her eyes but she wouldn't let them fall. She smiled at him, feeling her heart ache at everything he was doing to protect her. Eve sighed and took the note. It threatened her and those closest to her, Heather and Jack.

"You should call them," he whispered, as if he read her mind.

She nodded and got up, walking to get her phone. She walked around the room while she waited for her best friend to answer. She felt relieved when Heather did. "Hey," she whispered. "Where are you?"

Heather laughed on the other line. Eve heard a voice with her. "I'm with him," she muttered. "And we were having fun until you called. What's up? I don't really have time right now, but I swear I'll call you back later."

"You need to come to my apartment."

Heather laughed again. "Eve, I'm a little busy right now. I told you, I will call you back later."

"Someone wants to kill you."

Heather finally stopped laughing. "What?"

Eve quickly explained everything to her best friend and knew she had scared her when she was finished. She listened for her friend's voice, but she didn't hear a sound from her. "I know this is scary right now, but I swear once you get here everything will be fine."

"What about Jack?"

"I'm calling him next. He told me he was going home after he left the hospital."

"Why is he doing this?"

"Because Matt is with me. He wants to hurt him."

Heather sighed. "Okay. I'll be there as soon as I can."

Eve sat back down next to Matt and leaned on him. She didn't know what to say. He pulled her closer and kissed her cheek, obviously upset that he was putting her through pain. "I'm sorry," he told her. "I'm putting everyone you love in danger. I never wanted this to happen. I never thought this would happen. Owen hasn't bothered me in months now." Matt's eyes grew wide.

She stared at him, touching his arm. "What?"

Matt shook his head. "He must have been watching me. He only came after me when he realized I met you. He showed up at my apartment a few days after we met, Eve."

"I'm sorry."

"No," he answered. "You don't have to be. This is my fault. I should have known better. If I wasn't happy, he wouldn't have bothered with me. I should have never talked to you and everyone would be okay right now. You would be with your friends and I would be at home, hoping I would be able to make it through the month. That's how it was supposed to work."

Eve shook her head and stared at Matt. "You deserve to be happy, Matt. I don't care what anyone says to you. I'm happy I met you. While I don't want this to happen, it doesn't mean I don't like you. You can't expect that you should have to live like that. You have the right to be happy. He has no right over that. And God, if he could hear me right now, I would tell him this. I don't give a fuck who he is and what he thinks he can do to me, you deserve to be happy. And he is the one who should be in pain right now."

He stared at her, his eyes on hers. She didn't know what he was going to say back to her, but she didn't care. She was sick of this person trying to ruin Matt's life. It made her mad that Matt thought he had to live like that. Then, before she could say anything else, he leaned forward and kissed her on the lips. He pressed his fingers against her shoulders and pushed her back on the couch. Eve opened her eyes and gently pushed him off.

"I need to call Jack," she remembered.

Matt nodded. She could tell he was annoyed that they wouldn't be able to finish kissing. Eve gave him a smile and he laughed.

She called Jack and waited for him to answer, getting nervous when he didn't. She called the number again, closing her eyes. He needed to answer his phone. It was not a time to ignore her, even if she was mad at him. When he had left the hospital, they were talking to each other and she hoped he still wanted to talk with her.

"He's not answering," she whispered. Eve sat down, beginning to cry. She remembered telling Jack she was angry with him and wished she hadn't. Maybe they would have left the hospital together and she wouldn't have to worry again.

"Maybe he's busy," Matt answered, touching her arm. "It's okay."

"God," she muttered, staring at him. "If that asshole hurts him."

Matt pulled her closer. "It's going to be okay. I promise you, Eve."

She sighed and leaned against Matt, wishing that Owen would just leave Matt alone. They sat for a while, neither saying anything. Eve didn't know anything else to say though and just hoped everything would be okay.

Another knock on the door made her stand up. "That's Heather," she whispered. "I'll be right back."

She didn't expect Colin to be with Heather, but welcomed them both inside anyway. They took a seat next to Matt and stared at him. Eve sat next to Matt again, explaining to Heather that her brother wasn't answering her phone, asking for her to call him to make sure he wasn't mad at Eve.

"I think you should call the police," Heather finally said. "I don't care what happened. He has no right to make us all sit here and worry. I want this guy arrested."

"They'll never arrest him," Matt whispered. "You don't understand this guy. They hate me."

"I don't give a fuck who he is!" Heather snapped. Eve had to smile at her best friend's words and she laughed a little. "He's not going to make me sit here and worry when I could be having fun. If he even touches my brother, he's going to be in the hospital for a very long time."

"Heather," Colin whispered.

She put her hand up and walked away while her boyfriend stared at her, looking at Matt. "I don't know what Eve has said to you, but you really piss me off. I love my best friend and she's done a lot for you in the past few days. Now she's being threatened and all you can do is sit here and say there is nothing we can do. That's a bunch of crap. I'm sure you like Eve and all, but if you think you're going to be able to protect her, you're a fucking idiot."

"Heather." Eve tried to stop her, but Heather shook her head.

"No, Eve. He needs to realize that the police need to know about this. This fucking guy has no right to make your life hell and I'm not watching my best friend live in fear for the next few years just because she's dating you. You're not putting her at risk; you're putting everyone at risk."

"You don't know Owen."

Heather nodded. "You're right."

"There is nothing we can do."

"That's not true."

Matt sighed. "He's never going to stop. If they put him into jail, he's going to find a way to make sure my life is hell."

"You're a fucking loser," Heather said. Eve watched as Heather walked in front of him. "I'm sorry that his sister did that to you and I'm sorry that he shot you. But you're letting him ruin your life and if you never stop him, he's never going to stop. I'm not going to watch my best friend stay with you and worry the rest of her life. She deserves better and I think you know that."

"Heather, stop."

"No, Eve."

"She's right," Matt whispered.

"Matt," Eve said carefully. "She's just mad."

Everything seemed crazy as time seemed to freeze. Matt was looking at her with a heartbroken expression, while Heather walked over to Colin and sat down, glaring at everyone. Eve didn't know what to do. It felt like everything was crashing down all around her when there was a loud popping noise outside.

"What was that?"

Eve jumped up and ran to the window. She felt her knees go weak when she saw who was lying on the ground.

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**Who do you think it is? Poor everyone. REVIEW.**


	17. Love

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing.

**Author's Note: **Thank you for the reviews. This chapter explains the ending of the last chapter. Enjoy!

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Eve ran from her apartment and to where the body was lying on the ground. She saw the blood that covered him and saw that he wasn't conscious. Everything inside of her nearly came from her mouth as she dropped to the floor and covered the place where the blood was coming from. She felt tears coming from her eyes, dripping and mixing with his blood.

"Jack," she sobbed. "Hold on, Jack. It's going to be okay. You're going to be okay."

She continued to hold pressure where the blood came from, as Heather rushed to her side. She saw the fear and anger in her eyes while she sobbed too, taking her brother's hand.

"He can't die, Eve. He can't die tonight, Eve."

Eve looked around her, hoping that Colin had called the police like he said he would. This shouldn't have happened; Heather was right. She was done fighting with Owen and she wasn't going to let him walk away without getting in trouble for this. She didn't care what Matt thought; she was going to make sure he paid for what he did to Jack.

People began to crowd around them as they realized the unconscious man on the ground and a woman stepped in, looking at Eve. She explained that she was a nurse and asked her to remove her hand. When Eve did, the woman used someone's clothes to cover it and then put her hand there.

"What happened?" she asked.

Heather and Eve exchanged a glance and both sighed. "We don't know. It's her brother."

The woman nodded. "He's going to lose a lot of blood. Someone called for help, right?"

Did she think they were idiots?

Eve looked around her and wondered where he had gone so fast that no one saw him running away with a gun. She understood what Matt meant about him in a way; it would be hard to catch him without someone getting hurt. But it didn't matter anymore. She wasn't going to let him hurt someone else she loved.

When the ambulance pulled up, they got Jack inside and she watched as they loaded him on. Heather got on with him and gave her a weak smile as the door shut. Eve sighed, staring down at her hands. Jack's blood was all over her, showing the pain he had caused for everyone. She went back into her apartment where Matt and Colin were sitting. Matt stood up and walked over to her and she could see the embarrassment and worry in his face. Colin looked uncomfortable, considering he didn't really know anyone in the room.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, touching her face. "I never wanted to let you get hurt. Is Jack going to be okay?"

She shrugged and began to cry again, falling into his arms. Matt held her even though he was weak and she wished she could stay there and everything would be okay.

"We'll go to the hospital," Matt whispered. "Okay? Everything will be fine, Eve."

Even at the hospital, Eve couldn't calm down. When they got to the hospital, they had taken Matt back to his room, and since she didn't know Colin well, it was awkward. Heather was with Jack, or somewhere near where he was. She hadn't seen her since getting there, only being told she needed to be with her brother and to stay with Colin.

He was seated near her, still looking uncomfortable. Eve stared at him, wondering how much longer he was going to last until Heather got bored again and left him. She felt sorry for him, considering he was a nice guy and always seemed to treat her well. But he had lasted nearly a month, and she didn't seem to be annoyed with him yet. Every time she had called, she seemed bouncy and excited.

Eve wanted to say something to him, but didn't know what to say. She didn't know him, only heard what Heather had told her. He might have picked her up when she was mad at Matt, and he might have even stayed at Jack's apartment for hours, but she still didn't know him.

She liked that he was there for Heather. But that was a typical guy for her best friend; always caring and always wanting to please her. She didn't understand why she didn't bother with guys like them. Heather seemed to wish for adventure, guys who would break her heart and she would chase after. Thinking back to when they met, she wondered how he acted. There had to be something about him that caught her attention.

"What are you staring at?" Colin asked.

Eve gave him a smile and shook her head. "Sorry. I'm just tired."

"Do you want to see if there is any news on Jack?"

She didn't answer but walked over to the desk, looking at the woman behind it. She explained the situation and the woman only shrugged, looking at the computer in front of her. "There haven't been any updates. A doctor will come when there is one."

Jack had been brought in over an hour ago, she realized. He must have been in surgery. Heather would have told them if something bad happened, right? Eve closed her eyes. Nothing bad would happen. Jack was going to be okay.

Instead of going back to sit with Colin, Eve walked to where Matt's room was, seeing him sitting in bed. She went to walk inside, but stopped when she saw he was crying. He didn't notice her at first; she stayed where she was, watching him cry. It was weird to see him crying, as he was a large and strong man when he wasn't injured. She never imagined a person like him cried.

Gently, she walked into the room. "Matt?"

He wiped the tears and looked at her, knowing she had seen him. "Hey. How's Jack?"

"I don't know." She sighed, sitting down on his bed. "I'm worried."

"He's going to be fine."

"I don't know." Eve swallowed, unable to believe she just said that Jack might not be fine. "He's been in there a long time. What if they can't save him?"

"They will. Doctors are good at what they do, Eve."

"They can't save everyone." The words scared her, as she knew that it was true that doctors couldn't save everyone. Would Jack be one of the lucky people who lived?

Matt nodded. "I'm sorry this happened, Eve. If I knew I was going to ruin your life, I would have never talked to you. I shouldn't have. It's so fucked up. Owen doesn't care. I don't understand why he's doing this to me. It's not like his sister actually cares. Why doesn't he just give up? I just want to be with you and I can't because of this. I'm sorry, Eve."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't put you in danger anymore. Heather is right. You deserve better and you should be able to live your life with someone who can treat you right and make you happy. I want you to have everything you want, Eve."

Eve was furious that he thought this. She grabbed his hand, slamming it into hers. She was tired of the way he was acting and wished he would realize that what happened because of Owen wasn't his fault. When their eyes met, she shook her head. "I have everything I want, Matt. I've had it since the moment I met you. I'm not looking for someone to shower me in gifts and make me feel as if I'm better. Because I'm nothing more than a model trying to survive. Just like you're trying to survive. Owen isn't going to make me go away. He can go fuck himself. I'm not leaving you, Matt. I love you."

When Eve said those words, her eyes widened. Not because they weren't true, because they were. It was because she didn't think she could say them, worried that he didn't love her. But when his expression melted, and Matt sat up, she knew he loved her. Matt pulled her close and they kissed. It was powerful, beautiful, and she wished that it wouldn't end for a long time. In those few seconds, she forgot about every problem she ever had, stayed in the moment with him, and felt loved.

"You should have kissed me like that a long time ago," she laughed when he finally stopped kissing her and sat back.

He laughed. "I don't think the doctors would like me to kiss you right now," he explained. "I could rip my stitches."

Eve felt herself laugh. "You're in a hospital, Matt. I think you'll be okay if you kissed me."

"Yeah?" She leaned forward, getting onto the bed. He held her, pulling her close. "I love you." Eve couldn't help but smile.

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**Matt in a hospital bed. It's strange to think about, lol. Matt and Eve love each other. REVIEW.**


	18. Jack's explanation

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing.

**Author's Note: **Thank you for the reviews. I finally have an amazing ending for this and we should end this story soon, lol. I can't imagine what else I could write about for this, so I think we're good. This chapter will make you worry, I think, lol. Enjoy!

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Eve spent the night with Matt, sleeping in his hospital room. It didn't seem like the nurses cared and they probably were happy that she was there. They had to know if she was near, Matt would probably stay in his hospital bed. She didn't sleep well though. She had constant worries about Jack and often woke up, thinking she was next to him again, her hand covering where his was shot.

Matt slept, much to her surprise. He looked so calm and happy with his eyes closed. If he was worried, she couldn't really tell. He needed to rest and everything that was happening didn't help anyone.

She closed her eyes, remembering this had only started a few days before. It felt as if days were blurring into the next and she could barely remember what happened on each day.

She wondered if she would ever see Owen. Would he constantly hide and only injure those she loved when he was sure she couldn't see him? Eve sighed.

The sun rose, showing it was morning. She blinked, wondering how much sleep she had gotten the night before. There was constant noise from the machines on Matt and the talking of the nurses who worked during the night. They came in every few hours, making sure everything was okay.

Eve wondered where Heather and Colin were. She hoped someone would tell her if something bad happened and would bring her to Jack. She thought about Jack and how they were angry; she wished she wouldn't have fought with him. Did he think this was all her fault?

"Eve?" Matt's tired voice made her look up and she saw his worried eyes on her face. "Jack?"

She shook her head. "I haven't heard anything from Heather."

He sighed, slowly sitting up. "You should ask someone."

Eve nodded. She was really tired of waiting for an answer and decided to get one herself. She walked around until she found the floor that Jack was on. The doctors had finished the surgery hours before, apparently, which made her mad. She had spent hours worrying about her best friend when she could have seen him. After taking to the nurse, she knew while Jack lost a severe amount of blood and was extremely lucky to be alive, he would be okay. Now that she knew this, Eve was determined to know what happened.

She received directions to his hospital room and sat down next to his bed. He was sleeping, many tubes and IVs attached to his body. While it was all very sad, she was glad he was alive and would be okay. She took his hand, remembering all the times he was there to save her, or just there to offer her a bed. Every time Heather would leave with some guy she just met, he'd offer to come get her, just so she would be safe.

Eve rolled her eyes.

"Eve." His thick, almost unheard voice made her ears perk. Jack was awake, looking at her with cautious eyes. "Hey."

She gave him a weak smile and put her fingers to his lips. "Try to rest," she explained. "You don't have to talk yet."

"I do," he whispered, clearing his throat several times. "You're in danger. We're all in danger."

"I know."

"_No_," he muttered. "You don't. I fucked up."

"I can see that," she admitted dryly. "Hence the hospital bed."

"_No_," Jack repeated. "Fucking stop with the jokes."

Eve obliged and fear grew in her at the haunted look in his eyes. He seemed to have trouble breathing, but he assured her he was okay as he began to explain what happened. "I went looking for this Owen guy," he whispered. "I thought if I could confront him, he'd leave you alone."

"How did you know his last name?"

"Matt's ex was in the papers. I figured they had the same last name and when I was satisfied it was him, I stalked his house." Eve's head slowly was spinning as he explained what he had managed to do in only a day's time. She knew he seemed to regret what he did, but she was intrigued with what he had to say. "I followed him all night. That fucking asshole doesn't sleep."

Eve laughed.

"He was in a car near your apartment yesterday. I really wanted to say something to him but I was sure if I stayed watching, he wouldn't get far. I realized as Heather and Colin got into your apartment, something must have happened."

"He threatened Matt at the hospital."

Jack looked concerned. "That's not possible."

"He sent flowers with a note."

"Unless he's had this planned for weeks, that's not possible."

"Maybe he sent someone in his place."

Jack considered this. "That's an idea. Fuck, if it's true. We can't worry about two people now. Anyway, I watched Heather and Colin walk into your apartment. I knew something happened, so I really kept my eye on Owen. I watched as he left his car and began to walk toward the apartment. Fuck, I couldn't let him touch my sister or you. I called his name and he didn't know who I was at first. Then, a sick smile came onto his face. You'd never know who he was, Eve. He looks as if he's a nice fucking guy, I swear. I told him to stay away from you and we argued on the road. People didn't seem to care."

Eve swallowed, shaking her head.

"When he didn't stop, I put my arm on him. He must have had the gun under his jacket or something, because in seconds, he pulled it and I was on the ground. He took off in his car, but I know he's still fucking watching everyone. I know it."

"He had to have someone get the flowers and put the note inside. Are you sure he didn't call the flowers in and get them sent to Matt?"

"No," Jack insisted. "He didn't even use the phone other than once. He was on the phone with another guy. They were fighting and I couldn't really hear what he said." Jack's eyes clouded. "Shit."

"What?"

"I think he must have been on the phone with whoever is helping him. Maybe it's his sister."

"Do you really think she still cares about Matt?"

Jack shrugged. "I don't know. Who else would it be?"

Eve sighed. "I don't know. Have you seen Heather?"

"No," Jack answered. "I haven't. That doesn't mean she didn't come here though. I've been sleeping all day. It's exhausting." He gave her a weak smile.

She touched his hand. "Thank you," she whispered.

He shrugged. "I was just watching for those I love."

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**Eve should really be worried right now. REVIEW.**


	19. For Those She Loves

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing.

**Author's Note: **Thank you for the reviews. This chapter is very important as it shows something you might not have expected. And lol, sorry, Hailey it isn't that Jack is involved. Enjoy!

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Eve stayed with Jack for a while and then decided it was time she found Heather, or at least told Matt that her friend was okay. First, she decided to get some coffee as sleep was not coming easy to her lately and she knew she needed the energy. As she mixed the sugar in, she closed her eyes and wondered when this would all end. She was sick and tired of having someone watching her every move and being terrified of who Owen would torment next.

While she didn't want to worry Matt, she knew he had to know what was going on. She could see his reaction, the anger that would become his face. It had only taken a few weeks for him to know how he would react. There was some kind of connection they had and while she loved the feeling, it scared her. Sometimes, she wanted to lie to him. Heather's angry words at her apartment came into her mind and she sighed. Heather was right. It was time to get the police involved, whether Matt wanted to or not. Jack could prove that they were being stalked and the gun shot wound to his chest would prove this even more.

Slowly, she made her way back up to Matt's hospital room, noticing he was on the phone with someone. She stopped in front of the door way, listening carefully to what he was saying. He seemed mad and worried, his voice low.

Eve walked into the room and was surprised when Matt did not hang up the phone. He showed her worried eyes and she took a small breath, wondering what could have happened this time. Matt then said something to whoever was on the phone and hung up, his expression showing concern.

"What?" she demanded, her voice shaking a little.

Matt looked around him. "Where is Heather?"

"I don't know," Eve admitted. "I was about to call her and tell her that Jack was awake."

"Jack's awake?"

She smiled warmly. "Yeah."

Matt didn't seem relieved like she expected. "You haven't seen Heather though."

"No. Why?" Eve moved closer to Matt's bed, worried from the tone that was sifting through his voice. She watched his eyes, as they were showing signals of fear and concern, making her own heart jump and pound in her chest.

"Don't panic," Matt muttered. His words already made her knees feel weak. "I think Heather's been taken."

"What?" Eve yelled. "Why?"

Matt explained who was on the phone. It was a voice that he knew he recognized, but couldn't place. He stated how the man claimed that Heather was in danger and that he wanted Eve to meet him to save Heather's life. When Matt said no, there was a scream on the other line.

"Heather's here," Eve whispered in a desperate voice. She didn't want to believe her best friend could be in danger. "No, she's okay. She's here."

"Eve," Matt whispered. "Are you sure?"

"I haven't heard from her since last night," Eve admitted with a heavy sigh. "God, why is he doing this?"

"It wasn't Owen on the phone."

"Jack mentioned he could have someone working with him." Eve quickly explained what Jack and told her and Matt seemed to be pleased with what her friend did. "Matt, it had to be that person."

Matt shifted in his bed. "I know."

"What should we do?" Eve sat for a moment, nearly collapsing in the unforgiving hospital chair, when Matt didn't offer her an answer. She remembered all the times that Heather was there for her and everything they had been through as friends. With a newfound determination, she looked into Matt's eyes. "I'll meet whoever it was."

Matt seemed very against this and shook his head vigorously at her. "No, Eve."

"Yes, Matt." She took a deep breath and knew it was the only way for this to end. "I can't let my other best friend get hurt. She'd do it for me in a second and I know Colin must be worried."

"Oh, God."

"What?"

Matt sat up, his face covered in pain. She almost made him sit back down, but he pushed her away. "It's Colin."

"What about him?"

"I think he's the one helping Owen," Matt explained.

Eve closed her eyes. She didn't want to believe that. He was always nice and _always around_. Her heart sank. Colin always seemed to be around. "He met her the night I met you," Eve answered. "It's not possible. How would he know that I would meet you and then date Heather? He wouldn't know if Heather was my friend at first. It's not possible."

Matt sighed. "I saw him around for a while at the bar. I never thought anything of him because he was always hanging with different people. If he's working for Owen, he's probably been coming to my job to watch me for a while. When he realized Heather was your friend, he probably asked her to stay with him."

"Heather," I muttered. "He's slept with her!" She didn't mean to tell Matt about my best friend's sex life, but it all seemed strange. "Why would he sleep with her?"

"The sex probably meant nothing to him."

Those words made Eve have chills. "I really would have thought he was the one who would stick around."

"He did," Matt said dryly.

Eve sighed. "Matt, I have to save her. I can't let her get hurt."

Matt nodded. "I know."

She was more than terrified but knew she would have to meet with Colin and save her friend. Matt showed her a number to call that the person gave Matt and she called it, waiting for an answer.

"Hello?" the voice on the other line said.

"I'll do it," she said in a sure voice. "Where do you want me to meet you?"

She heard the familiar laugh of Colin. "Somewhere I know you're alone. I don't want to see anyone with you, Eve."

"That's not all that hard," she answered. "You've taken all the ones who could protect me anyway, Colin."

"Oh, we're very smart," Colin laughed. He gave her an address and she sat down, feeling her head spin.

"Eve?"

She looked at Matt with worried eyes. "Yeah."

"Please, be careful," he whispered.

Eve nodded. "I will."

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**Colin, did any of you expect that? Hopefully Eve can save everyone. Lol. REVIEW.**


	20. Colin

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing.

**Author's Note: **Thank you for the reviews. And this was a very hard chapter to write as I wasn't sure what I wanted to happen, lol. Enjoy!

* * *

Eve slowly drove to the address Colin had given her, her stomach hurting as she thought about her best friend. She drove until she reached a very secluded, dark area surrounded with broken down houses, just miles from the loud city. Her eyes narrowed as she searched for an address, finding many of the houses didn't have any. Finally, she was able to find the house and stepped in front of it, wondering if she should have agreed to come here.

As Colin had explained, the door was open when she put her hand on it. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the dim lighting and she walked around with careful movement, afraid someone would jump at her or she would fall. "Colin?" she asked in a voice that proved she was terrified, if her heart jumping in her chest wasn't enough. "Hello?"

She heard a muffled cry and looked around, seeing a door. Even though she didn't know where it led, she walked toward it and put her hand on it. Whoever was crying sounded like Heather. "Heather?" she whispered. "Are you inside?"

No one answered.

"Don't move," another voice said.

Whoever the person standing behind her was, wasn't Colin. Eve panicked and turned around, staring at someone who she had never seen before. Somehow from his twisted eyes, she knew it was Owen.

"I said don't move!"

"Okay," she muttered. "I'm not."

"You're much prettier up close, Eve," he laughed, walking toward her. She felt a chill swept over her as he touched her face, almost as if he was caressing it. Eve swallowed, afraid of moving in front of him. He had a gun near his hand, one he was able to pull on her any second. "Is the pretty Eve afraid?"

Eve shook her head. "I'm not afraid of you."

"Uh huh, sure. I'm still wondering how Matt got such a pretty thing like you. He's not all that rich, shame. And he's definitely not as handsome as I am, don't you agree?" Owen looked as if he could be handsome if he ever shaved or even showered, but he didn't have anything on Matt. Matt had amazing eyes and a smile that always made her feel warm. His handsome face was one of her favorite things to look at. "Answer me!"

Owen's bark made her jump and she nodded, deciding if she played along, he wouldn't use the gun on her like he had did on her friends. "Not at all," she said in a small voice.

"Good girl," he barked. "Now tell me, how is your little friend doing? Jack, is it?"

"He's fine," she said.

Owen laughed. "Figures. If he hadn't of moved, he would have been dead."

Eve didn't answer.

Owen continued watching her while he walked around the dirty room. "Eve, don't you think Matt deserves to be in jail for what he did?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"He didn't do anything," she replied. "As far as I'm concerned, you're the only one who has broken the law."

He slammed her in the face before she could even realize he moved. Her mouth was sore in seconds and she placed her hand there, praying he couldn't tell how afraid she was. "You are very rude," he snapped. "Apologize."

"Where is Heather?"

"Apologize and maybe I'll tell you."

Eve suddenly realized there was blood all over his shirt and looked around. "What did you do to her?"

"Oh, her? Nothing," he laughed. "She's just a little sore. Don't worry about her."

At that moment, there was another muffled yell; it wasn't female. "Colin," she remembered. "You hurt him."

"He's not a very good liar," Owen shrugged.

Eve stared at him. "What?"

"Oh, nothing, don't worry Eve."

The muffled voice yelled again. Eve noticed whoever was yelling was in another room behind Owen. She knew she didn't stand a chance with the gun near Owen's hand, but something told her not to trust a word he said. Heather was hurt and she needed her help. "What do you want?" Eve whispered. "I just want my friend back. I just want this to be over. I'm sick of you harassing us. Please."

"I want your boyfriend dead!" he snapped. "But somehow, he keeps surviving; it's very annoying, let me tell you."

"He didn't do anything to you!"

"He hurt my sister," he barked.

Eve shook her head. "No, he didn't." Eve noticed there was a door with a lock just from the room. If she was able to push Owen out of the way just for a second, she would be safe until he broke the door. "He really didn't. You don't know what happened. He never hurt her and your sister is a liar."

He slapped her again. "Shut your fucking mouth, bitch."

"What?" Eve said with a smile. "Have I pissed you off?"

He reached for his gun and just as he went to use it, she slammed past him and ran into the room, locking the door behind her. She closed her eyes and looked around, feeling her heart jump in her chest. On the dirty floor was Colin, tied up, blood dripping from a wound to his stomach, much like Matt's. Suddenly, what happened made sense. Owen said earlier that Colin wasn't a good liar. Could Colin have lied and only said what he said to her because Owen threatened him? Eve looked around, not seeing Heather. She knew while she couldn't trust Colin yet, he was hurt and he was the muffled yelling before. Owen slammed on the door and she knew she didn't have much time before he went through it.

Eve dropped on her knees and put pressure on Colin's injury, taking the cloth off his mouth. "Fuck," he muttered. "Shit, I'm sorry, Eve. I never meant to make you come here. He had his stupid gun on my back the entire time. I only said what I said because I didn't want him to hurt me or Heather. Oh, fuck," he moaned as she tried to stop the blood. "Please, it hurts."

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "Where is Heather?"

"She is in the car down the street, in the truck of the car. He brought her in here before and beat her while he had me tied up. I couldn't do anything," he whispered as tears flooded his eyes. "I felt so bad. He made me take her to the car with the gun after. I was afraid he'd kill us, so I listened to him."

Eve felt her own eyes fill with tears as Colin's eyes closed a little. "Hey," she whispered. "Stay awake."

A loud slam into the door made Eve realize Owen was closer. Suddenly, there was a loud popping noise and a small hole in the door. Eve felt her heart jump when she realized he was shooting the door. Colin moaned again as she tore at the ropes around his arms, trying to let him free. She was able to get him free as another gun shot hit the door. She pulled Colin up and looked around, the only way from the room a window. Colin leaned on her, blood covering the shirt that he wore. His eyes looked tired and she instructed him to stay awake. "Please," she muttered.

Eve made it to the window and opened it, looking at Colin. It was a few feet down and it looked as if it would be hard to fall from. "Please go first," she told Colin. "You're hurt."

He shook his head. "Please."

"No," she said in a dark voice. "Go!"

The door slammed open then and she forced Colin through the window, seeing Owen charge her. He slammed into the wall as she moved and a gun shot went off. Screaming from shock, she looked around. It hadn't even hit her. "Leave me alone!"

He laughed. "Oh, bitch, you're not leaving here."

Eve cried, her eyes afraid. "Please."

Owen put up the gun and he fired, just missing her. Eve knew she had to get the gun from him and ran forward, shoving into him as he looked around, obviously trying to plan something. He fell hard on the ground and the gun slid across the room. He pulled her down as she ran after it, her body hitting the ground hard. She didn't let him win though and kicked him, hoping one hit would keep him down. He struggled against her, forcing her to look at him. "I told you," he barked. "I'm gonna win."

"Fuck you," she yelled and kicked him with her leg where it would hurt most, sending him flying on the ground. She grabbed his gun and stood on top of him. "I should really kill you, but I won't. If you just give me the keys to the car Heather is in, I'll leave you here. You play any fucking games and I'll kill you."

Owen's eyes darkened as he sat in pain. "I won't let you win."

"Oh? I have your gun, you asshole."

He shrugged. "I won't let you have the keys. You can point the gun at me all day, but I won't let you have the keys."

She fired his gun at the ceiling and smiled at him. "You're destroyed enough of my life over the last few weeks. Don't think I won't shoot you. You've hurt my boyfriend, my friends, and me and I'm not very forgiving of that. I won't let you leave here alive, trust me."

She pointed his gun at him and Owen put his hands up. "Fine, fine," he said in a voice that knew she meant he gave up. "Okay, here." He threw at set of keys at her and backed up from the gun and sighed. "It's the one right there."

Eve slowly walked toward the window, not letting go of the gun. "Thanks," she said with a laugh. She jumped from the window, noticing Colin hadn't moved. "Shit, Colin!"

He moved a little, trying to look at her. "I can't move, but I'm okay," he whispered.

Eve pulled him up. "I left him in there," she explained, showing him the gun. "I don't know what to do. If I just leave him there, this will never end. I don't want to kill him though."

"Call the police," Colin whispered.

Eve sighed. She knew even though Matt wouldn't want her to, she had to and nodded.

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**Colin wasn't part of it, lol. REVIEW.**


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